Catalyst
by Unstable Firestarter
Summary: Advent Children. Katja has amnesia until she meets three silver haired strangers who hold the key to her past and she's pulled in deeper then she could imagine. Everybody has secrets, but hers is deadly. Yazoo/OC.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: First off, I suck at summaries, so yeah. Second, this is my first Advent Children fic, and I'm a little unsure about some of the locations, but it all works for me, so, it should be okay. Please R&R-but I'd appreciate no flames, thank you. Rated M only for language.

Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Advent Children, no one and nothing at all; if I did I'd be rich and could pay some guy to dress up as Yazoo, lmao.

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**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter One**

It was late afternoon as she walked down a street in Edge. Edge was the city built around Midgar, which had been destroyed by Meteor, black magic, two years ago. Things were how they usually were; people were milling about, talking, building, or doing nothing much in particular. There were those who were stricken with Geostigma, a mysterious disease of which there was no cure, and Katja was grateful to be one of the ones who wasn't.

Katja was a tall young woman, in her twenties seemingly, with bright blue-green eyes and long silver hair pulled back in a low pony tail with long bangs framing her face. She wore an outfit completely composed of black leather; knee high boots with solid heels, pants that were loose from the knee down due to slits on the back, and tight from the knee up. There was a two inch wide slit that went from seam-to-seam on the front of the right thigh. A tight v-neck vest with a high, stiff collar, red and silver buckles across the front and a pointed red cross emblazoned on the back. Elbow length gloves with pointed ends that go a couple inches past her elbows on the outside and a headpiece of twisted black leather and silver metal that wraps around her head and is mostly hidden under her hair.

She'd shown up wandering around Edge a year or so ago, with no memory of anything before that, including how she got there. Maybe she had lived in Midgar before, and her memory had been damaged from the destruction, but she might never know. She didn't remember her family, where she'd grown up, nothing. She knew how to fight though, and it made her wonder if she'd been a warrior. She didn't even remember her own name, and so had decided to call herself Katja. She's lived here in Edge ever since, helping Tifa Lockheart and Cloud Strife with Seventh Heaven-Tifa's bar-and the Orphanage. Occasionally with Cloud's deliver service as well, if she was needed. Mostly just busy work for some one who had nothing better to do or anywhere else to go. Thinking about that, she remembered Tifa and Marlene, one of the children living with them, saying something about Cloud returning today.

Gazing around as she walked, she noticed some one familiar down an alley and stopped. Denzel, one of the kids that Tifa was taking care of at the Orphanage. There was a young girl pulling him by the hand, and Katja watched them for a moment. Curious, she wondered where they were going, but it was only when she realized that she hadn't seen any of the other children in a while did she seriously consider it.

"Denzel. Hey, Denzel, wait!" she called, starting down the alley.

Denzel half turned to look back at her, recognition lighting in his eyes, but neither him nor the girl stopped. They turned the corner, vanishing from her line of sight, and she picked up the pace a little. She turned the corner about a half minute later, stopping short when she saw all the children. Most of them were sitting in a large, open backed truck. She realized that they were all of the children who had Geostigma, and frowned a little when she saw the man watching the children. He had long silver hair and was dressed all in black leather, with a type of Gunblade holstered at his side. What was going on?

"Where are you taking the children?" she asked, making her presence known.

The man turned, and she saw that he had the most vivid green eyes, just a hint of blue, and his pupils were vertical slits; cat's eyes. There was a slightly far-away expression in them, like a waking dreamer. He didn't seem surprised or upset to see her sudden appearance, he actually smiled a little.

"We're going to cure their 'stigma," he replied, voice quiet and calm, matching his expression.

She watched him cautiously, noting his use of 'we're'. Was he telling her the truth? Couldn't be; there was no cure for Geostigma. He didn't seem to be a threat, but there was something about him, an air of danger.

"Trouble, Yazoo?" asked a new voice

She turned her head another silver haired man approaching them. His hair was short, spiky and he also wore black leather. His eyes were vivid as well, more blue than green though, but his pupils were the same; vertical slits.

"Perhaps, Loz," Yazoo replied.

Katja then noticed that the little girl Loz had by the arm was-Marlene!

"Katja!" Marlene exclaimed when she saw her. She appeared frightened, but also that she was trying to be brave.

Marlene was supposed to have been with Tifa, waiting for Cloud.

"Don't worry Marlene," Katja said, now considering the strangers a threat. She drew Draco, her long sword with the five foot blade, strange writing engraved on it. There was an open slit down the center of the length of the blade, with a silver trinket tied at the base, clinking musically against it when it moved. The hilt was curved, and wrapped in blood red material. "You two aren't taking the children anywhere."

Loz gazed at her for a second, as if considering what she said, than snorted a little, "You're wrong, but you can try." He said.

Katja narrowed her eyes, disliking him immediately, though she really couldn't say why. She didn't wait any longer and made the first move. She dashed forward, pivoting to bring Draco around in a deadly circle towards whoever was closest to her-Yazoo. But he was suddenly no longer standing there. She spun; he was two yards off to her left now.

"Going to have to be faster than that, sister," he said to her, still calm spoken, though there was demented look of danger in his eyes.

Then he drew his own weapon-Velvet Nightmare-its appearance that of a gunblade-and shot at her. She dodged to the side, ducking her head and swinging Draco around to use the blade to block the bullets. They flew off with resulting mini showers of sparks. She performed a back flip that took her clear over Loz, and landed nimbly on the side of the truck, only to jump away again to draw the fight away from the children. She landed at the mouth of the alley from which she'd followed Denzel, but was facing away from the strangers, and because of this, took a blow to the back from Loz's Dual Hound-a stun weapon combination shield. She went flying forward and crashed into a rusty fire escape ladder which broke beneath her weight. She was on her feet in a moment, back to a dumpster, shaking off the bit of energy crackling through her as well as the pain as if it were nothing.

Loz rushed towards her from ahead while Yazoo came at her from the side, cornering her. She moved to swing Draco, but the blade scraped against the wall and she realized that there wasn't enough room. She leaped straight up, landing on the dumpster behind her, and was finally able to bring Draco around to block a blow from Yazoo. She took a step back and blocked another blow from his Velvet Nightmare, becoming a little unstable as she did so. She swung her sword at Yazoo anyway. He easily ducked and kicked her in the stomach. Katja fell backward off the dumpster, landing on her back on the ground, Draco scraping the asphalt. She swiftly rolled to the side and avoided a blow from Loz's Dual Hound that cracked the pavement and probably would have broken ribs. She vaulted to her feet and swung her sword at him, forcing him to jump back. She advanced and landed a kick square to his chest, knocking him back. Yazoo leapt down at her and struck a blow to her shoulder with the blade of his weapon. With a hiss of pain, she pivoted to the side, pausing for just a second to glance down at her wound; a long but not too deep gash that was already dripping blood down her arm.

In her moment of distraction, Loz hit her in the side hard enough to send her tumbling back out of the alley and into the main street. Katja blinked up at the sky for a second, disorientated. Then she was swinging around, back on her feet. But it took her a second too long; as she shook her bangs back from her eyes she saw Loz and Yazoo already coming at her again. She dodged to the side to avoid a punch from Loz and spun to bring Draco up diagonally to block Yazoo's Velvet Nightmare, resulting in a screech of grinding metal. A blow that would have cut deep into her shoulder and severely wounded her. She leapt straight up to avoid another attack from Loz, meaning to lean back into a back flip, but Yazoo leapt with her, landing a swift punch to the back of her neck. She fell from the air and hit the pavement on one knee, resting most of her weight on her sword. Pain spiked down her spine, and she felt lightheaded. She looked up in time in time to see Loz lunging at her to strike her in the chest with his Dual Hound, crushing the air from her lungs and sending her flying backward. She lost her grip on Draco as she hit the hood of a parked car, half smashing the windshield. With a groan, she slid off to lie in an unconscious heap on the pavement, blood seeping from a cut on her forehead just under her headpiece.

Loz started towards her to finish her off.

"You left the children?" inquired a new voice.

Yazoo and Loz both turned.

"We, uh, ran into a problem," Loz said.

The third young man had silver hair almost done to his shoulders, half hiding his face, and was a head shorter than the other two. His eyes were vivid blue-green, pupils vertical slits. He wore black leather as well, and there was a sword sheathed at his back. He gazed at Katja for a moment. "Appears that it's taken care of." He said.

"She wasn't glad to see us," Yazoo said, actually sounding a bit sad.

"She will be, in time," the newest arrival said with a dark dangerous look in his eyes, "Come; Mother's waiting."

OoooooooooooooO

It was late evening when Katja slowly awakened. She groaned a little and heard a voice.

"You're awake. I saw you take on those two, I was worried you were dead at first, I didn't want to move you."

She opened her eyes to see a man crouched next to her. After a moment, she sat up, looking around. She was still out on the street. She raised a hand to her forehead and felt that the wound had been tended to. As well as her shoulder. She gazed at the man for a moment.

"Thank you," she said.

She suddenly remembered that she'd lost Draco during the fight and looked around for it. "Where's-?" she started.

He seemed to know what she meant. "Your sword? Right here," he said, pulling it over from behind him. "Those three should never have come here, what did they want?" He sounded curious.

"Three?" Katja repeated with a frown, "Did you see them, where they went?"

She took Draco and stood, returning it to its sheath on her back. As she stood there, feeling the tenderness in her chest, she thought of how stupid she had been for underestimating their speed and strength. Letting herself be defeated. She wouldn't let it happen again.

"Right after you fought them, their leader came. I suppose they went back to their base," the man replied, suddenly seeming nervous as he stood as well, glancing around.

Katja gazed at him, "Why are you nervous?" she asked, "You know who they are, don't you? Please, tell me. They…took the children."

He gazed at her, eyes widening a little as he considered this. "Kadaj…and his gang," he said as last, "If they took the children anywhere, it would be their base at the Forgotten Capital, in the Sleeping Forest."

"Kadaj?" she repeated, shaking her head; that name wasn't familiar to her at all. She knew where the Sleeping Forest was though. "Thank you again," she added.

She turned and headed down the street; she had to find Tifa, or Cloud if he had returned. She went by Seventh Heaven, but there was no one there. Lilith-her motorcycle-was parked out front anyway, and she got on, starting the engine. She took off down the road, heading into old Midgar. If they weren't there, she wasn't sure where they might be. In Sector 5, there was a church, and old church, and Katja parked out front. She walked over bits of rubble strewn about and pushed open the tall double doors. Walking down the center aisle, she had to step around smashed pews. When she reached the front of the church, she saw both Tifa and Cloud lying amongst the flowers. For a moment she thought the worst, but when she crouched beside them, she saw that they were only unconscious.

"Cloud," she said, shaking him a little, "Tifa."

Neither of them so much as stirred. Katja rested her elbows on her knees and put her head in her hands for a moment, sighing. _Now_ what was she supposed to do? She wanted to go after the children and rescue them, but she should at least take Tifa and Cloud back to Seventh Heaven. And that was not going to be easy.

OoooooooooooooO

As she pulled to a stop front of Seventh Heaven, she noticed two guys hanging around. She recognized them, they worked for Shin-Ra, but it took her a moment to think of their names; Reno and Rude. She'd only met them twice before, and so really didn't know them very well at all. They watched her watch them for second.

"What happened to them?" Reno asked, sounding mildly curious.

She didn't answer him. After everything that had happened to her so far today she wasn't in the mood. "You two gonna stand there and look pretty or are you gonna help me?" she said, a little irritated.

They looked at each other for a moment, as if unsure if they should be insulted, then walked over to her.

"Only for a lady," Reno said.

After they'd gotten Tifa and Cloud upstairs, Katja lingered in the doorway. It was almost night and the children had been gone for hours, who knew what could have happened to them.

"Hey," she said, "I can't wait around, so whenever those two wake up, tell them that some one kidnapped the children and I'm going to get them back," not waiting for a response, she turned and started down the hall to the stairs.

"Wait, _where_ are you going?" Reno asked, noticing that she was beat up, as he half followed her out the door, "Don't you want to wait for Cloud?"

"Sleeping Forest, and no, I'll be fine. If I wait for him, it might be too late," she called over her shoulder as she went downstairs and out the door.

He watched her leave with half raised eyebrows, and then looked over at Rude, who just shrugged. Reno was thinking to himself how familiar she was; she reminded him of some one he used to know. But it would be impossible. There was something creepy about her that he couldn't figure out. As Katja walked out of Seventh Heaven, she looked up at the darkening sky and shook her head a little. She swung her leg over Lilith and started the engine. She took off down the street, dodging around a parked car, and left Edge, heading for the Sleeping Forest.


	2. Chapter 2

**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Two**

Katja was racing along an old path on Lilith in the Sleeping Forest, heading for Kadaj's base. She wondered again why they had taken the children, but she couldn't figure it out. Other unanswered questions plagued her mind; why had they called her 'sister'? And what about things they had in common; appearance, speed, strength? Maybe they knew something about her past-maybe. Plus, she added to herself, she wasn't too happy at all that they had totally kicked her ass. She shook her head a little. Suddenly, she spotted a lone figure standing thirty yards ahead, in the middle of the path. She narrowed her eyes, but didn't slow down. It was Loz, and as he watched her swift approach, he smirked. Twenty yards, ten. A glow formed around his Dual Hound and he slammed it into the ground, causing a wave of earth and rocks to rise up and race forward as if it had a mind of its own. Katja's eyes widened a bit, but she had no time to react. The earth attack hit her, and she was thrown from Lilith. She twisted in midair, attempting to come down feet first and keep her balance. But suddenly, from above, Yazoo leapt down from a tree, landing on her back and dragging her down with his weight. She hit the ground hard with a grunt and he jumped away nimbly before she could recover.

Looking up before she actually got up, she saw, quite a ways up the old path, Forgotten Capital-and Kadaj with the children. She had to get there! Then she climbed to her feet, drawing her sword. For a moment, she merely regarded Yazoo and Loz, standing side-by-side, ominous figures in the fog, and they gazed back at her. No one spoke. She stood there, with her sword non threateningly down at her side, but she was wary and tense, anticipating a fight-especially after what had just happened.

"I'm only here to take the children back," she said.

"You can't do that; we need them," Yazoo said, drawing Velvet Nightmare.

Katja started to ask why, but didn't get a chance to, as he opened fire at her. She ran to the left, feeling the disturbance in the air from the bullets they passed so close to her. One even winged her shoulder, where she'd been injured earlier, but it wasn't bad. She suddenly saw Loz coming up behind her and spun, holding her sword with her left hand and raising it over her head to strike down at him. He moved faster then her, and as she turned, he grabbed her left wrist, holding her blade away and preventing her from hitting him.

Their eyes met for the briefest of seconds, and she hated the expression on his face. Then he punched her just under the rib cage with Dual Hound, at the same time letting go of her wrist. She went flying backward, managing to keep her balance, and only stopping when she hit a tree. It took her a moment to shake off the blow, and when she did, she raised Draco in front of her, gripping the hilt with both hands. Not intending to be beaten this time, she rushed at Loz, swinging her sword from the left. He dodged, and she continued through with the swing, bringing Draco around from the right now. He blocked with Dual Hound and the result was a flash of sparks. She swung again, bringing Draco straight down this time. He took a fast back step, dodging, and she started forward, dropping Draco down to her side. Using the sword blade for support, she kicked forward with both feet to land a double kick that knocked him back onto the ground. She followed through with the momentum; landing easily and lifting her sword back up into a defensive/offensive position.

Suddenly, there was the sound of an engine, and headlights lit up the path. Katja turned to see Cloud racing down the path on his bike, Fenrir. His gaze flickered from her, to Yazoo and Loz. He had almost reached them when Kadaj leaped down from the trees above with the children. Something was wrong with them, Katja saw at once. Their eyes…no; Mako eyes…. Yazoo looked over at Cloud's approach with an almost disgusted expression, but then saw Kadaj and the children surround him and half smirked. Cloud saw the children as well, right in front of him, and tried to stop, skidding to the side. He leaped from his bike and Loz and Kadaj both moved to attack him. Katja went to help him but Yazoo turned and blocked her path. He swung Velvet Nightmare at her like a sword and she blocked, a clash of metal echoing through the air. He drove her backwards, striking at her again. Again she blocked, raising Draco to deliver a blow of her own. Before she could though, he kicked her just below the rib cage, where Loz had hit her before. She thought she felt something crack as she stumbled back a couple of steps, bowing her head. She felt sick for a moment and was suddenly unable to breathe, feeling like some one was squeezing her lungs and she put a hand over her abdomen for a second.

When she looked up again, raising Draco, Yazoo was no where to be seen. Cautiously, she started to turn. He was suddenly behind her, and grabbed her by her left arm-the arm she was holding her sword with-by the back of her vest and threw her. She went flying through the air, definitely going to hit a tree ahead, and tried to twist to the side. Yazoo leaped up, and kicked her sword from her hand. It went spinning away until it hit the ground and embedded point first. Now she also had a stinging hand along with being disorientated. He half kicked her, more like using her as a stepping stone to leap away and land easily on the ground. Katja crashed into the middle branches of the tree nearly twice as hard as she originally would have, snapping limps in her wake and taking them down with her as she hit the ground. She rolled a few yards before laying still face down, one arm thrown up over her head in what might have been an effort to protect her face.

Scattered branches lay strewn about her, and the only sign that she was still alive was a soft groan, almost inaudible. She attempted to roll over and climb to her feet, but mostly failed. She pushed herself up on her elbows, then to one knee, her side really aching now. Looking up, she saw Yazoo walking towards her, Velvet Nightmare in one hand, a silent angel of death. She shook her head a little to clear it, and shakily rose the rest of the way to her feet, wiping away blood from a scratch across her cheek. After firming gaining her balance, since her sword was out of reach, she unclipped Cobra-her ten foot black leather whip-from her hip. She let it uncoil around her feet, flicking it a little so it wouldn't tangle. She glanced around, making sure she had enough room-she did. She cracked Cobra in the air in front of her, taking comfort in the sound. As she stood there, she wondered why Yazoo hadn't attacked her yet again.

He paused when he saw the whip she held, a little wary. Then he suddenly darted to the side, behind a tree, and leapt up onto a lower branch, using it to vault into the air and came at her, Velvet Nightmare raised. She tensed, whirling Cobra over her head with her left hand, waiting for him to get close enough. With a simple flick of her wrist, she snapped the whip, the movement so fast it was a blur, making it hard to tell at first if she hit him. But she knew. He dropped from his leap about nine feet from her, landing easily on his feet, his head bowed a little. Then he raised one gloved hand to the trickle of blood running down his face from the slash of the whip. As he raised his head, giving her a glare dark enough to chill her very bones, there was a flash of dark red that glided over the forest and caused them both to look up. Then he started towards her again. Returning her attention to him, Katja whirled Cobra over her head once more, swinging it backward to better snap it forward. Suddenly though, it became tangled on something and jerked her arm to a stop. Frowning, she half turned to look behind her, and saw that her whip hadn't gotten tangled-Loz stood behind her, gripping the end of her whip in one hand. He gave it a good, strong yank and pulled her off her feet towards him, catching her by the neck with one hand and pulling the whip from her grip with his other, tossing it aside.

Yazoo paused for a moment, then with a slight, sly smirk, continued towards the both of them, resting Velvet Nightmare on one shoulder. Katja wasted no time in lashing a kick at Loz's knee that caused him to wince and loosen his grip on her. She twisted his wrist and fully freed herself, continuing to twist his whole arm around and sweep his feet out from under him with one leg. Then she turned and started to run towards Draco. She dove into a forward roll as Yazoo started shooting at her again. She grabbed her sword as she rolled, ducking behind a tree to catch her breath. She crouched there, leaning most of her weight on her sword. She began to wonder if it was a mistake coming here alone. Maybe she _should_ have waited for Cloud before. Suddenly, out of no where, a blurred figure ran past her, close enough to ruffle her hair. Startled, she jumped to her feet and tensed for battle again. It was then she heard a somewhat laughing, manic voice;

"Don't hide sister, join the fun."

She turned, trying to find the source of the voice, but at first couldn't. Turning again, she finally saw him standing by a tree off to her right. Dressed full in black leather, silver hair hanging across his face, half hiding his blue-green cat's eyes, giving him a mysterious air. She could guess who he was. "Kadaj."

He continued to just stand there for a moment, regarding her, not seeming surprised at all that she knew his name. He held Souba, his twin bladed katana, in one hand. Then he rushed towards her, only using his blade to knock hers aside as he kicked her in the shoulder, knocking her off balance and sending her spinning. Surprised by his speed, she leaned Draco's blade on the ground to keep herself up. She turned to counter strike, but didn't get a chance to; he rushed at her again from the opposite direction, hitting her in the side and resulting with her slashing at him with her sword. He made a soft disapproving sound at this, and hit her again, knocking her to one knee. She used the hand she was holding Draco with to stop herself from completely falling over. Angered by the swiftness of his attacks, she started to raise her sword again, but he stepped on the blade. When she raised her head to look up at him, he hit her one last time, an almost gentle blow that still knocked her back against the tree trunk. He kicked her sword from her hand and raised his own.

"Can't we just get along?"

She actually thought he sounded sincere, if not a bit crazy and frustrated, instead of taunting, and that puzzled her. She shook her head slightly, trying to regain her composure, and gazed up at him. He thrust his sword at her, and she turned her head reflexively to the side, expecting to feel a flash of pain. Instead, she only felt the cold steel of the blade, and turned her head again to see that he had buried his sword through the collar of her vest, beside her neck, and into the tree behind her.

"That's better," Kadaj said, taking a few steps back as Yazoo and Loz circled around the tree to stand on either side of him.

From where Katja sat on the ground, pinned to the tree like a helpless bug, she gazed up at them, a little exhausted, but pissed as well. She didn't like these odds, not at all. "Alright, you've definitely got my attention, what the hell do you want?" she demanded, trying to keep the frustration and unease out of her voice.

OoooooooooooooO

Cloud was standing by the lake, his back to the mysterious man a couple yards behind him. "I can't leave Katja here-Kadaj and his gang will kill her," he said.

He felt a little guilty that, from what he'd heard from Reno, Katja hadn't hesitated to come after the kids to bring them back, without even knowing what she was really up against. And he _had_ hesitated.

"Katja? The woman," the mysterious man, whose name Vincent Valentine, said from behind him.

"…And the kids…Marlene and the kids…"

OoooooooooooooO

"We want what you want," Kadaj said, "_Sophronica_."

Katja frowned, puzzled as to what he meant, why he called her that. "Sophro-" she started to repeat, but was interrupted by a spear of pain lancing through her head.

She closed her eyes and raised a hand to her temple. What was going on? It felt like there was a hurricane inside of her mind, raging and destroying. The pain grew worse, and then just…faded. Sweeping with it all of her conscious thoughts. She opened her eyes and suddenly she was a different person. Her eyes were more vivid, and her pupils had contracted into vertical catlike slits. She gazed around at the three of them, unsure of where she was, who they were, what was going on. There was a tidal wave of emotions raging within her, confusing her, jolting her full of energy. How had she gotten here? Then, she sifted through her most recent memories-hers but somehow not hers, and slowly began to understand. So much had happened since….What had Shin-Ra done to her this time? Shin-Ra; after everything they still had the nerve to call themselves merely a 'global electric company'. She turned her head to gaze at the blade pierced through the collar of her vest, and annoyance filled her expression. And speaking of that, what was with these cloths? Not completely her style, but she supposed they'd have to do.

"Could you _please_ remove this sword?" she said with sarcastic politeness, her tone more so annoyed.

Yazoo and Loz looked at each other, obviously unsure, and didn't move.

It was Kadaj who walked forward and pulled Souba out to him, more confident then the other two, but also still a bit cautious. "Sophronica?"

She gazed at him as she climbed swiftly and with liquid grace to her feet, straightening the collar of her vest. Moving with an air of arrogance, she picked up Draco before answering him. "Of course, but how do you know my name?" she asked, sliding her sword back into its sheath and awaiting his reply. Were these three going to be friend or foe? Help or hindrance? Something was odd about them all, she could feel it, radiating in the air. Power and danger…and something else.

"Because we know of your brother as well," he said.

Suddenly she regarded him with interest. "You know my brother?" she inquired. Had he possibly sent them to find her after what had happened? Did he even know she was alive?

He started to reply, but before he could, Cloud suddenly arrived, still believing that Katja needed to be rescued.

She turned her head, sneering as she watched Cloud approach. "Cloud, so nice of you to join us again," she said, turning to fully face him. The blonde blue eyed reluctant hero.

He stopped short at the tone of her voice, watching her, a little unsure. "Katja?" He had his blade raised in front of him, expecting a fight from the other three but not her.

"You're too late, brother," Kadaj said.

"Katja is unavailable right now," Sophronica said. Cobra was suddenly coiled at her hip again, yet she'd never moved to retrieve it, and she was drawing Draco. She twirled her sword in her left hand for a moment before settling her grip on the hilt.

She looked back up at Cloud and he suddenly saw the change in her eyes, that something had happened to her. "What have you done to her?" he demanded.

Kadaj laughed, a kind of insane laugh, "I've merely awakened her true self."

Sophronica's gaze flickered from him to Cloud. "Come on Cloud, I think you've been an annoyance long enough." And then she was moving towards him, swinging her sword.

He blocked with his own blade, and sparks flew. He moved to the side to avoid her next blow, a little hesitant about fighting her.

"It's no fun if you don't fight back," she said, leaping over a particularly large fallen tree branch and bringing Draco around in an arch.

Behind them, Yazoo started to move to join the fight as well, but Kadaj stopped him.

"No. Watch."

Cloud blocked her blow once again, pushing her back this time. "Katja, what's wrong with you?"

"I am _not_ Katja!" she returned with a snarl. She unleashed a series of swift sword strikes that caused sparks to erupt at each clash, and forced him to tae a step back with each one as he blocked. "Katja is a weak shell," she swung again.

He parried and struck back.

Sophronica smirked a little with the realization that he was finally going to fight back now, and moved like she was going to bring Draco sweeping down at him. He instinctively moved to block, ready to counterattack, but she changed momentum, now that he had his blade raised to block her 'sword attack', and leaned sideways to deliver a hard kick to his chest, knocking him backward and almost off his feet. She lowered Draco to her side and walked towards him. Holding her sword only in her left hand, she slashed it horizontally at him, catching part of his shirt and a little of the sleeve on his left arm as he jumped back. He struck at her and she blocked. She gripped the hilt of her sword with both hands and counter struck. He noticed that she was leading with her left hand, and that, on top of everything else, disturbed him.

He struck at her again, and she pivoted to the side, using his momentum against him and kicking him in the back. The blow sent him sprawling, and she walked around him, giving him the chance to get to his feet before attacking him again. She started to swing Draco around, but he surprised her by swinging his blade inside her defense and hitting her with the flat of the blade. She stumbled back a little, and smirked a bit to know that he was still reluctant to hit her. She planned on using that to her advantage. By now they'd moved pretty far from where they'd started and as of the moment, Kadaj and the other two were no where to be seen.

A twinge started in her mind, a nagging feeling, but she ignored it and regained her footing. She swung her sword around at him hard, and he blocked, turning her sword aside. A glow of energy started around his blade. She knew what he was about to do, and started to leap straight up to avoid it. A sudden blinding flash of pain tore through her head and she dropped back to the ground. She half raised her hands to her head, shaking it a little and trying to recover in time to dodge. The pain came again and she knew the source.

"Get out of my head!" she shouted.

He saw that something was wrong with her, but it was too late to stop. She took the full force of the blow, sprawling back to hit a tree and almost loosing her grip on Draco. She laid there for a moment, stunned, her breath knocked away and still recovering from the pain in her head. She tried to climb to her feet and he tensed again. She fell backward against the tree trunk, squeezing her eyes shut and raising her free hand to her forehead.

"No," she shook her head, starting to raise her sword again, eyes still closed.

She opened her eyes suddenly, heart pounding, and they were normal. She gazed at him, eyes wide and confused. "No! Cloud…" she let Draco fall from her hand to show that she no longer intended to fight him. "It's me, Katja…"

Cloud watched her, cautious and unsure. "Who were you before than?" he asked.

Katja shook her head, deeply confused, "I…don't know. I'm sorry," she whispered, shaking her head again. "What happened?" Her voice shook a little.

"I was hoping you'd tell me that," he said.

"I…don't remember," she paused, "…Kadaj…"

"What about him?"

"I was fighting him, and then…this…" she said slowly, hopelessly.

She pushed away from the tree, picking up Draco and sliding it in its sheath. Suddenly, she winced again, giving her head a shake. She could feel the presence of another mind trying to surface within her own, trying to push her out of the way, and it scared her. Slowly she sank to her knees, seeming to be muttering to herself.

He took a step back, wary again, not knowing what was going on, "Katja?"

With locks of silver hair covering her face, she looked up at him with her head bent and he saw that her pupils were vertical slits.

"You should be running," she said lowly, dead serious.

She could sense the intentions of the "Intruder Consciousness", and they were to kill Cloud. Suddenly, breaking the silence of the forest around them, there was gunfire. Cloud ducked and dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding being shot. He turned to see both Yazoo and Kadaj coming through the trees towards them. He moved to stand half in front of Katja…or who ever she was right now, figuring they'd come for her. Kadaj headed right for him and slashed at him with his double-bladed katana. Cloud blocked and returned the blow. As they started fighting, he didn't realize that Kadaj was drawing him away from Katja/Sophronica. Yazoo went over to Sophronica and crouched beside her. Even though Katja was still mentally fighting her, she tried to push away his attempt to pick her up, muttering something about being able to walk on her own, not needing his help.

"Damn you, Katja," she cursed to herself, trying to push her back into silence.

Yazoo tilted his head to the side and gave her a look. She raised her gaze to him and their eyes met. After a moment, she relented, and he lifted her in his arms. He turned briefly to Kadaj, than started to leave off through the forest, moving swiftly. Sophronica closed her eyes, and slipped into her subconscious to personally deal with Katja. Cloud looked up and saw Yazoo carrying Katja off. He tried to push Kadaj out of the way and go after them, but Kadaj knocked him back with a swift sword blow. He then turned and vanished off after Yazoo and Sophronica, leaving Cloud standing there.


	3. Chapter 3

**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Three**

_Everything was dark, a red and black vortex, with broken bits of earth floating slowly through it. A rotting battlefield. Sophronica walked across one of these pieces to jump down to a lower one, landing light as a feather, and stood facing Katja. They were in Sophronica's subconscious, so everything around them was just an image created by her._

"_Who are you?" Katja demanded._

_Sophronica just gazed at her for a moment. "I'm you," she replied._

_The two of them looked identical, except that Sophronica was wearing her old Shin-Ra Army uniform. Even though they were both just mental projections created by their minds._

"_That's impossible," Katja said, gazing back at her._

_Sophronica gave a bitter laugh. "It's very possible. You don't remember your-our-past." She said, starting to slowly walk towards her._

"_You can't be me!" Katja insisted, shaking her head._

_Sophronica rolled her eyes. A second later, she was suddenly standing right in front of Katja, her sword drawn. The blade was pierced through her stomach and stuck out three feet from her back. Katja gazed at her in shock, and then just faded out. Sophronica lowered her sword._

"_Much better," she said._

That would keep Katja quiet for a while. She closed her eyes and concentrated. She rose up from the 'basement' of her subconscious, slowly awakening from her sleep like state. Just before she was about to open her eyes, she felt a slight tug on her hair. What was…? She half opened one eye and saw Yazoo untangling a twig from her hair. Hmm. After a moment, she opened both eyes and sat up. She gazed around and saw that she was still in the Sleeping Forest, at the Forgotten Capital. Her gaze traveled back around to Yazoo, who had suddenly rose to his feet and backed up a couple of feet as Kadaj walked over.

"I didn't think your awakening would be so difficult," he said to her.

She gave a small snort as she climbed to her feet. "I never planned on having to have an 'awakening' to begin with," she said.

She thought again of Katja. She was going to have to find a way to get rid of her, or something. Katja was nothing but an annoyance. An ignorant annoyance at that. If her personality hadn't been created after whatever Shin-Ra had done to her, there wouldn't be any problem. But there was.

Kadaj had walked away from her a little, but now suddenly turned back to her, his eyes intense. "What do you know about Mother?" he asked.

For a moment, she just gazed at him, considering this. She knew full well what he was talking about; he was referring to Jenova, the being who had crashed on the planet two thousand years ago. Shin-Ra had discovered this being, and thought it was a Cetra, an ancient race. That's when the experiments had started. Jenova. Mako energy. Experiments that led to SOLDIER, to the birth of her and her brother. And that day, that damned day…

_She was walking down a hallway, Shin-Ra personnel and security passing her as she went. She could feel that something was wrong, every one was on edge, and there was a tension in the air that was almost tangible. She also noticed the nervous looks some of them were giving her and glared back at them. She was pissed, didn't care about whatever they were concerned about, it wasn't her problem, didn't care if they knew she was upset; they were all going to get what they deserved anyway. She had just discovered their biggest secret against her, and they would burn. Shin-Ra-all those bastards-had _created_ her. _And_ her brother-of whom she had just tried to contact-with no luck; long hours ago he'd gone out, on orders, to insect the Mako Reactor outside the town of Nibelheim. All those years and she never knew. How could they manage to keep something like that from them? All those years they had her unwavering loyalty, well, no more. She'd show the Shin-Ra President just what she thought about this._

_She turned a bend, her long black leather trench coat sweeping the ground behind her with a whisper. The lights glinted off her blood red shoulder guards, and the two swords sheathed across her back. She wore no gloves, and scars were etched across the backs of her hands, continuing up under the cuffs of her coat. Her footsteps were heavy against the floor as she wore black army boots. As she watched, two members of security walked towards her, each of them carrying a stun rod. She stopped, eyeing them, far from bothered by them. If the gleam of rage in her eyes bothered them, they didn't show it._

"_Sophronica, could you please come with us," the taller one said._

_He was polite, but she knew he wouldn't hesitate to use force against her, neither of them would. She contemplated the idea of just telling them to fuck off, but changed her mind._

"_Unless it's to see the President, forget it," she said, shaking her head._

_Locks of her shoulder length silver hair fell across her eyes. She drew Dagon, her deadly sharp sword that was narrow at the tip, but almost as broad as the hilt at the base. It was heavy, but she was more than used to it._

_The two men looked at each other, but didn't back down. "You're going to have to come with us," the other one said._

_She didn't respond to this, just started forward with her sword in hand. They didn't even have the chance to defend themselves before she attacked, swinging her blade around in an arch that took one of the guard's heads with it and alit the body with flames. She nailed the second guard in the face with an elbow and sent him sprawling back against the wall, blood pouring from his nose. She than continued down the hall towards her destination, only pausing when she heard the other guard get to his feet and come at her. She reversed her grip on Dagon and plunged it backward into his body. She freed her blade with a yank and started walking again. She hadn't made it very far when she heard the pounding footsteps of guards behind her, and there was a stinging in her back. Followed by a jolt of electricity that trembled down her sword and knocked her to one knee. She shook off the shock and stood. Tasers-she hated tasers. She didn't get a chance to either step forward or turn, because they tasered her again-twice. She fell to her knees, electricity coursing through her body, and her sword clattered to the floor. _NO_, they weren't going to stop her! A third and final jolt raced through her, exploding to her nerve endings and causing her to grit her teeth. She threw a poisonous look over her shoulder, eyes drifting over anonymous faces-a flash of red hair and her gaze locked onto that familiar face. '_That punk, some fuckin' friend,_' was her last thought before she collapsed._

_----------_

"_Subject is ready," a voice was saying, "Procedure is a go."_

_What subject, what procedure? Wait a minute, were they talking about _her_? She didn't move; let it appear as if she was still out. Her whole body was still tingling, in a little pain, but she was too pissed to care. Was that all she was to them now, a subject? She'd rebelled, so now they were…what? Going to put her down like a fucking dog? Her rage was boiling up again, and she didn't bother to try and rein it in. Let it grow, maybe it would help her unleash the powers they'd given her by infusing her with Jenova's cells. Unleash her power and burn them all. Yes, _burn_. She was suddenly aware of a pin point of pain at the back of her head that was beginning to grow. What were they doing to her? Some mental resistance broke and the air around her grew hot._

"_What the hell?" a voice asked._

_Her eyes snapped open, and she saw the restraints on her wrists and ankles melting. She sat up, reaching a hand back to her head. Her fingers came away bloody. There was a man in the room with her, and it had been him who had spoken. He was backing away from her now._

"_Impossible! You can't be awake, not after-"_

_She stood, looking around the room, and spotted Draco resting against the wall by the door. How foolish of them to leave one of her weapons so close. She started towards it, bringing her knee up into the man's stomach and elbowing him in the face. Pushing him out of her way, she picked up Draco and kicked down the door. He showed a moment of stupid bravery and tried to stop her; she ran him through with her sword and left him there in the doorway as she began down the hallway. Alarms had started going off; she could hear running footsteps and voices. Flames erupted around the edges of her blade, rippling in the air. Guards rounded the bend and ran towards her. She just kept walking. She suddenly felt like she was losing something, and after a moment realized she couldn't remember growing up at Nibelheim. She swung Draco around and a fireball flew from the tip, crashing into the guards, through the wall behind them. Things sparked and exploded. She lost more memories as she walked, cursing Shin-Ra every second of the way; she knew it was their doing. Something else exploded-sounded important. She was weakening though, losing her strength, but she continued. She hurled another fireball from her sword, a trickle of blood starting down from her nose, and a pain slicing through her head that pounded in time with her heart beat, only caring now that they burned._

_And then, all around her exploded…_

Blinking and shaking her head, Sophronica gazed at Kadaj. "I probably know about as much as you do," she replied at last, "I might have known more, before Shin-Ra fucked with my head some years ago." She laid a finger on her temple. She couldn't even remember how long; there was a blank in her memory from that day she'd almost died to when she'd shown up at Edge.

He wasn't deterred, "But you were so close to her."

Had she been? "I don't know where she is now," she started.

"But she's close." Yazoo finished with her, and she looked over at him.

"In Midgar," Kadaj agreed with them.

"How are we going to find Mother in Midgar?" Loz asked, sounding uncertain.

"We'll find her, even if we have to level the whole city," Kadaj assured him.

"You can do that, if you want," Sophronica said, "But I doubt very much that Shin-Ra would leave the remains of Jenova for anyone to find. They'd have her close. Like they keep their secrets," she paused. "Secrets…" she repeated, "You said you knew my brother?"

The three exchanged a glance and she narrowed her eyes a little.

"I never knew him. I can feel him so strongly though, he's not gone," Kadaj said.

For a long moment she had nothing to say to that. She had worked out the full meaning of those words, and felt like she'd been punched in the stomach. 'Knew', 'gone'? He couldn't be…dead. Her brother, master swordsman, highest ranking SOLDIER? She'd never known him to be even injured. Could this also be Shin-Ra's doing, another secret kept from her? It couldn't be…true. But he was serious.

"Who…?" she asked at last, confusion and rage swirling through her mind like a windstorm.

"Big brother; Cloud."

Her expression betrayed her surprise; Cloud? How could _he _possibly……? She really didn't care how, she found-she was infuriated. She never knew, and all this time…. That fucking bastard. Her rage was boiling, but she managed to keep it in check. _Wait_.

"_He's_ coming back," Kadaj said to her, his gaze intense once more.

She merely gazed back at him, frowning a bit, and waited for him to continue.

"With Mother's help, he can return."

Was that possible? Sure, why the hell not, she countered herself, lots of things that she'd once thought were impossible weren't. She glanced over at the other two, caught Yazoo watching her again, like he had been through most of the conversation. She continued to mostly ignore him; much more important things were on her mind. She was too pissed and forlorn-though she gave no signs of the latter-to care about anything but two things. They were going to have to find Jenova somehow, but she was certain it would be with Shin-Ra, and from 'Katja's' memories, Shin-Ra would probably be around Cloud. And Cloud himself; he'd have to fucking suffer. Maybe break every bone in his body and leave him to die? No; too kind. Looking around again slowly, she suddenly noticed Marlene, who had been hiding half behind Loz, gazing at her with wide eyes. Sophronica narrowed her own eyes as a plan began to form in her mind. Yes, that would work. An evil smile slid across her face.


	4. Chapter 4

**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Four**

It was morning, and Kadaj, Sophronica and Yazoo were racing across the Midgar Plains towards Edge. Marlene was with them as well, riding with Sophronica. Sophronica doubted that, since it was so early, Cloud had made it back to Edge yet, and that's where Loz was-finding Cloud where ever he was and slowing him down-by whatever means necessary. She was steering with mostly one hand, using her other to make sure Marlene didn't fall off-or try to escape, of which she doubted.

"Why are you doing this?" Marlene asked her.

"Just be quiet," was all that Sophronica said.

She blinked a few times and refocused her gaze, returning her attention to her surroundings. Kadaj was ahead of her by about twenty feet, and Yazoo was off to her right by three yards. At Edge, they stopped near the center, going the rest of the way to the Meteor Monument, the structure that had been built after that incident years ago, on foot. The people they passed for the most part paid them no real attention; they were just glad the children had returned, safe and sound and not remembering much of what had happened after they were kidnapped. Kadaj had suddenly let them go upon Sophronica's awakening, as the children would be no more use to them with her. Until they reached the Monument and Kadaj summoned a group of Shadow Creepers, dark, wild creatures, which proceeded to rampage about. People screamed, ran and were chased by the Creepers. Sophronica stood by the Monument, calm despite the chaos forming around her, with one hand firmly on Marlene's shoulder. The little girl flinched as a Creeper leapt past them, and Sophronica looked down at her. Glancing around, she discovered that Kadaj had already vanished, presumably continuing his search for Jenova. She saw that Yazoo was still with her though. She was waiting, and she doubted it would take long. She was right. Amongst the fleeing people she spotted Tifa. Apparently, so did Marlene.

"Tifa!" she cried-Sophronica didn't try to stop her.

Tifa's dark eyes lit up when she saw them, and she started towards them. "Marlene! You're safe!"

Sophronica merely stood there and watched her as she drew closer.

"Katja, what's going on, where's Cloud?" Tifa asked when she reached them.

Sophronica frowned, playing dumb, "He hasn't come back yet?" she said.

"No, is he okay?" Tifa sounded worried.

"I doubt it," Sophronica said, her attitude changing suddenly, "Thanks for telling me about him though." She pushed Marlene hind her, where Yazoo caught her by the arm, and spun into a kick that knocked Tifa off her feet and took her breath away.

She gazed up at her in surprise for a moment, "Katja?"

Sophronica didn't respond as she walked towards her. She left Tifa get to her feet before wrapping one hand around her neck and placing the other on her forehead. "Sleep now," she said softly, commandingly.

Tifa's eyes rolled back and she suddenly collapsed.

"Tifa!" Marlene exclaimed.

Sophronica turned back to them, nodding at Yazoo, "Call Loz."

OoooooooooooooO

Cloud finally reached Edge-a little worn out; he'd been on his way when he'd run into Loz, or, more the other way around. Loz had seemed intent on stopping him from returning to Edge, and they'd fought until he'd suddenly veered away. Cloud had the feeling that something was wrong, and he was right; when he got to Edge, he found it under attack by Shadow Creepers. Despite all the chaos, he went to Seventh Heaven first.

"Tifa?" he called.

There was no one downstairs, so he went upstairs. No one there either, also no sign of a fight. When he left, Sophronica was waiting for him outside, leaning casually against his motorcycle with her arms crossed. He tensed.

"Looking for some one?" she said.

"Where's Tifa?" he demanded.

She smirked a little, but it was slightly twisted. "If you don't want Tifa or Marlene to die, surrender to me," she said, tone serious. She pushed away from his motorcycle and uncrossed her arms.

He gazed at her for a moment. He knew he couldn't do that, couldn't trust her. If she had Tifa and Marlene, what would stop her from killing them after she was done with him? Slowly, he shook his head and drew his sword.

She gave him an evil grin and drew her own sword, "I was hoping you wouldn't," she told him.

She made the first move, darting forward and launching an attack that he easily blocked, and then darted back out of reach, forcing him to come to her to counter attack.

"What do you want with Tifa?" he asked as she blocked his counterattack.

"Nothing," Sophronica replied, bringing Draco around in an arch, "This has nothing to do with her," there was a clash of metal as he blocked, "Except that you care about her," she leaned forward on her sword and pushed him backwards.

After he got his balance, he gazed at her, and knew again that the expression in her eyes reminded him of an old enemy. He didn't get a chance to respond to her comment before she attacked him again. She faked a sword attack from the right, pivoted around to the left and drove a fist into his side. A kidney shot that sent him to his knees with flaring pain and left him struggling to breath for a moment.

"Come on Cloud," Sophronica taunted, circling him, "I thought you were a fighter," she seemed like she was starting to walk away, but paused, her back to him, "Ex-SOLDIER?" There was something bitter about the way she said it.

He got to his feet, and even though she was facing away from him, she was ready for his attack. She sidestepped, almost seeming to glide, and brought Draco up to block his second sword strike. She countered, than ran down the street, leaping onto the hood of a parked car and using it to vault up to a rusty fire escape landing that almost gave way with her weight. Then she continued up onto the rooftop. He narrowed his eyes a little, wondering why she was running-or maybe she was leading him. Either way, he followed. She was waiting for him at the opposite side, closest to the center of Edge and the Meteor Monument.

"They'd better be okay," he threatened.

"Or you'll…what?" she taunted, not bothered in the least.

She continued to just stand there and let him come across the rooftop to her. He swung his sword and she brought Draco up to block. The force behind his blow almost knocked her over backwards, over the edge. She glanced over her shoulder and something she saw brought a sly grin to her face. Turning back to him, she grabbed him by the arm and pulled him closer.

"Let's see if you can fly," she said lowly, and then pulled him over the edge with her.

As they went tumbling through the air, she flipped him over her head, kicked off the side of the building and performed a back flip away from him. A moment later, he saw why; Yazoo stood down by Meteor Monument, Velvet Nightmare drawn and aimed at him. The instant that Sophronica was far enough away, he opened fire on Cloud, who tried to use his sword to block. Sophronica landed easily in a crouch beside Yazoo, watching Cloud's descent as she straightened. He hit the pavement somewhat awkwardly, quickly trying to regain his balance as she walked towards him. He raised his sword, suddenly faltering when he looked past her and Yazoo and saw Tifa and Marlene, both seemingly unconscious.

"Tifa!"

He started towards them, but Sophronica blocked his way, swinging Draco around in a fast arch that he barely had time to block. Yazoo came at him from the side with a blow that knocked him off balance. Sophronica took advantage of this and kicked Cloud in the chest. He flew backward and hit the side of a building. He lay there for a moment, stunned, and she twirled her sword with one hand, energy gathering along the edges. The energy erupted into flames and she hurled a fireball from the tip of the blade that crashed into the wall of the building above Cloud. Glass shattered, bricks exploded, dust filled the air, and a section of the building broke off, mostly rubble by the time it hit the ground and buried Cloud.

Sophronica doubted that he was dead, but probably not going to be in very good shape fighting wise. Fine with her either way. She started towards him again, but a sudden breeze from above and faint sound of engines stopped her. Both she and Yazoo looked up; a massive airship. She narrowed her eyes and made a soft frustrated noise. Energy crackled down her sword again, manifesting into flames. She swung the blade over her head and another fireball flew through the air. It hit the large airship in the bow and resulted in a minor explosion and sparks. She still wasn't keen on sticking around; she didn't feel like battling Cloud's friends as well-not yet. She raised a hand to wipe away the drop of blood that slid from her nose and turned to Yazoo as another Shadow Creeper raced past them.

"Come on," she said, starting back towards where they'd parked the motorcycles.

There was going to be a lot more chaos here and she wasn't going to have it be her problem. She had also counted on all this destruction drawing some one else's attention too-and once more she'd been right; she hadn't been one of Shin-Ra's most valued personnel for nothing.

"Do you think Kadaj found Mother?" Yazoo inquired as he drew even beside her, watching her curiously.

"Maybe," Sophronica replied, somewhat distracted.

She reached Lilith and threw her leg over the motorcycle, swiftly starting the engine. Without waiting for Yazoo, she took off down the street only to skid sideways and bring Lilith to an abrupt stop in front of Reno, who jumped back.

"Hey! Are you trying to kill me?" he demanded, eyeing her somewhat suspiciously.

"Maybe," she responded, "You're coming with me."

He raised an eyebrow, "Nuh-uh, I think not."

"I think _so_," she returned, drawing back her fist and punching him the face with enough force to knock him out, before he could react.

She caught him with one arm and settled him across her bike behind her. She looked up as two motorcycles zoomed past her-Kadaj and Loz. She straightened out her own motorcycle and took off again. The wind blew her long bangs across her face as she raced to catch up with the other two. She looked over as Yazoo came up beside her. Even though his gaze was dead ahead, she was almost positive that he'd been watching her just a moment ago. And she found that she really didn't mind any more. The four of them raced across the Midgar Plains, leaving Edge under attack by the Shadow Creepers, Cloud unconscious and buried in rubble, and the airship forced to find enough room for an emergency landing.


	5. Chapter 5

**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Five**

They were back at Sleeping Forest again, maybe for the last time before…. Sophronica was crouched beside Reno, who was still out cold. Maybe she'd hit him a little too hard. She gave his red hair a couple of tugs and he groaned, tried to swat at her hand. She raised an eyebrow and tugged harder, close to losing her patience. Suddenly, he caught her wrist in one hand, opening his eyes. She gazed at him with a bit of surprise and rocked back on her heels as he sat up.

"Jeez, if you wanted a date, all you had to do was ask," Reno complained, but neither his tone nor his expression was joking.

Sophronica wasn't amused in the least. "I'll remember that next time," she said dryly, pulling her wrist out of his grip and standing.

"I'd like to know why you kidnapped me," he said, standing as well.

"You're going to tell me what you know about Jenova or I'm going to hurt you," she said simply.

"Am I?" he said with a raised eyebrow.

She moved to slap him on the side of the head, and he grabbed her arm, faster then she expected. She reached out her other hand and dug her nails into the back of his hand as she pulled it from her arm. He threw a punch, and she ducked, dropping down and pulling him down with her. She flipped him over her head, released him, and in the blink of an eye, had spun around to crouch on top of him, her knees on his chest.

"I think it would be wise to answer me," she said lowly and dangerously, her hands twisting his shirt collar.

"Right; Jenova." He said after a moment, "Why do you want to know about that for?"

"Are you _really_ that stupid?" she snarled, shaking her head a little, "You don't recognize me, after everything? It's me; Sophronica."

He gazed at her for a moment, than realization dawned in his eyes, "Sophronica?" he repeated, and even his tone of voice had changed, "I thought-"

"I died, after you helped them bring me down? Obviously not," she shook her head again, angry more so at the memories that were being dredged forward in her mind then that they were getting off track.

"You're not still angry about that, are you?" he said.

"What do you fucking think?" She growled, twisting tighter, choking him a little, "Now, what do you know about Jenova?"

"I guess you are." He raised his hands to her wrists, trying to break her grip. "Not much," Reno said. "Even if I did know something, I wouldn't tell you."

She shook him a little. "I'm not fuckin' around," she growled, "If you don't know, who would?"

There was suddenly a twinge of pain in her head that made her wince. She knew what was responsible. Their eyes met for a second, and it was she who looked away. He didn't answer her and she let him go, standing. She raised a hand briefly to her temple. Closing her eyes for a second.

"He's all yours, just-don't kill him," she said to Kadaj as she walked by.

She walked around to the far side of the lake, the twinge in her temples growing as she went. She knew only part of it was 'Katja's' fault, the rest…the rest was _his_. She leaned back against a tree and sank down to the forest floor. She closed her eyes and entered the basement of her subconscious; it was time to end this feud once and for all.

_The two stood on a piece of broken battle field that floated through a black vortex. They each had Draco drawn, and the only difference between them was the way they were dressed, as before. _

"_Why are you doing this, what do you want?" Katja demanded._

"_It bothers you, what I do," Sophronica said-a statement, not a question._

"_Of course, why-" Katja started._

"_Why do you value humanity so much?" Sophronica interrupted._

_Katja frowned, puzzled, but Sophronica gave her no chance to speak._

"_Would you value them so much if you remembered what they did to…us?" she said, and it sounded as though she meant more then just her and Katja. "I'm tired of this. I'm tired of fighting with myself, damn it," Sophronica continued, and she sounded it too; weary and worn out. "Let me reunite us with the memories of the past. Undo what Shin-Ra did."_

_Katja eyed her warily, not having much of a choice no matter what her instincts told her, and finally nodded. "I'm waiting," she said._

_Sophronica returned the nod, and after sheathing Draco, closed her eyes. She opened her mind, to all her memories, both painful and pleasant. Growing up at Nibelheim, joining the Shin-Ra army along with her brother. Discovering her hidden talent of Fire, receiving Draco from Shin-Ra-from _him-_and learning a bit about the spell engraved on it. Various missions and battles, that last day when they had sent her brother out and she discovered what Shin-Ra had done to them. Wondering now, if he ever found out as well. The gap of years in her memory, and then…_

_It was over. Sophronica stood alone in her subconscious. The 'ground' beneath her faded out, and she started up into conscious. Katja was gone now, because she had never really existed in the first place. She no longer had two warring 'personalities', she was normal again-normal as she could ever be anyway._

Sophronica opened her eyes, blinked a few times, and took a moment to remember where she was. That's right; Sleeping Forest. Realizing suddenly that she sensed a presence beside her, she turned her head. Yazoo. Looked as if he'd been there for quite some time. For a minute or two, neither of them spoke. She felt as if he'd been there…guarding her, almost, while she'd been confronting Katja. But…why? And why did he remind her so much of…?

"What did you find out about Mother?" she asked at last.

"He said the President knows," Yazoo responded, "At Edge."

She snorted softly at this, "Know? The President probably _has_ Jenova," she commented.

He turned his head and looked over at her, his silver hair as light and soft as silk falling across the side of his face, "You think so?"

"Most likely," she replied, her heart skipping, but her expression remaining the same.

He stood, offering her a hand up. She gazed at him for a second, about to decline and get up herself, but suddenly changed her mind. She placed her hand in his and allowed him to pull her to her feet as easily as if she weighed no more than a feather. They began to walk back around the lake in silence. Sophronica couldn't explain why her hand was still tingling, nor why her heart was beating a little faster. She thought she knew why, but now was no time for something like that, so she pushed those thoughts to the back of her mind. She told Kadaj what she had told Yazoo, and he thought she was right. She watched the three of them prepare to leave for Edge, and started to go with them.

Kadaj turned back to her, "Stay here. Brother-" she knew he meant Cloud, "-Is coming. You can stop him."

She blinked. "No. I'm going with you. I'm going to be there for the reunion," she said, a spark of anger in her voice-she hated being told what to do.

"You will be," he told her, putting a hand on her shoulder, "But first-Cloud."

She gazed at him, resisting the urge to pull away. Her gaze shifted past him, to Yazoo, who was watching them. She returned her attention to Kadaj and gave a soft growl. "Fine," she relented through gritted teeth.

She wasn't very happy with this, not very happy at all. Kadaj smiled at her a little, nodded, and turned. She watched him walk away, angry comments shifting through her head, but she didn't voice any of them. As they left, Yazoo didn't know why he felt uneasy about leaving her behind. He just did. He would have felt better if she came with them, but if Kadaj said she stayed behind, she stayed behind; he wasn't going to argue.


	6. Chapter 6

**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Six**

Sophronica was bored. She had been for some time now, but there was no one to complain to. Well, there was Reno, but he was busy being unconscious-and lucky to be alive. She felt a little bad, almost a little sick, about what the others had done to him; she was never much for torture. She was pacing back and forth, sometimes muttering to herself. Suddenly, there was the sound of an engine and she spotted headlights. She stopped pacing and looked up. Kadaj had been right; it was Cloud. She drew Draco, and waited.

Cloud looked around before speaking, "Where's Kadaj?"

"Not here," she replied, spreading her arms a little, "It's just you," she pointed at him with Draco, "And me." Then she added, "Well, and Reno, but he's had a bad day," she absently gestured behind her.

Cloud looked past her and she saw the expression chance in his eyes as he blanched. Before he could speak, she continued.

"Let's end this Cloud, I've had enough," she said, settling into an attack stance, and then moving towards him.

Her first attack was easy to block-as she meant it to be.

"What's Kadaj after?" Cloud asked her, "Why does he want Jenova?"

She snorted a little, "As if you didn't know," was all she said.

He _did_ know, he thought he knew-but he wanted to be sure, sure about what to expect. "Reunion," he said, swinging his sword at her.

She ducked, "Exactly," she said, bringing Draco up diagonally as she rose.

He blocked and for a moment, they stood there, eye to eye, blades locked.

"I remind you of _him_ don't I-Sephiroth?" she said lowly.

He gazed at her with mild surprise, wondering what she was getting at.

"And it scares you. _I_ scare you," she concluded. She stepped back, parrying his next blow.

"I'm _not_ scared of you," he denied. But she had voiced what he'd been thinking, and _that_ made him uneasy.

"You should be," she said, a glint of rage starting in her eyes, "I _am_ his sister."

His eyes widened a little in surprise; of course he'd had some idea of this, but he'd never known for sure. He remembered, years ago, there had been an explosion at Shin-Ra, supposed to have killed a lot of people, and Sephiroth had been greatly upset about-his sister.

She swung Draco at him hard and he half blocked-half dodged. "And he's coming back," she said. She swung again, her blows becoming swifter and harder to match her growing anger. "Not that you'll be alive to see it," she added.

He struck back at her, but the attack was nothing to her.

"When Kadaj finds Jenova's remains-the Reunion will awaken Sephiroth."

He absorbed this information, pausing for a second.

She took this opportunity to attack again, driving him back.

"You have to know that if he comes back, he's going to destroy this planet," he said.

"I know," she said simply, attacking him again with the swiftness and brutality of a tornado.

She drove him back again, turned his sword aside, and locked their blades together. She yanked and sent his sword flying through the air. She advanced towards him again, but he caught the blade of her sword in one gloved hand and pulled her off balance. As she stumbled, he kicked her sword hand and pulled Draco from her. She blinked in surprise, yet started to launch a punch anyway. She never got to finish though-he turned her sword on her and ran her through; forcing her back until she heard the blade splinter wood and her head hit the tree trunk. For a moment, she didn't comprehend, didn't feel any pain. She lowered her head and saw only four inches of blade and the hilt-the rest was through her stomach and the tree. She looked back up at Cloud with widening eyes, and his expression somewhat matched hers-surprise.

He backed away from her as blood began to issue forth from her wound, a dripping that grew into a trickle. Then the pain hit her, a hard, brutal wave that made her see spots and feel nauseous. Her rage boiled up as well, adding to this, and she attempted to pull out her sword. It didn't budge. She raised her eyes to Cloud, concentrating hard. The only result was a crackling of energy around her fingertips that soon shorted out, and a trickle of blood starting down from her nose.

----------------

At Edge, chaos was reigning once more. Shadow Creepers ran about again, Yazoo and Loz were fighting Tifa and Vincent. And Kadaj was high above all of this, in a building.

"I know you have Mother," he said, turning back to the Shin-Ra President.

"I've told you that we don't," Rufus insisted.

"I hate being lied to," Kadaj said.

---------------

Her blood was pooling around her feet, staining the forest floor. Cloud was gone-he'd taken Reno with him, of course. She kept loosing her footing, trying again to pull out the sword. She couldn't; she didn't have the strength. Another wave of pain rolled over her and she closed her eyes, focusing her mind. She reached out a thought, a single cry; all she could muster. One of them-one of the three-had to be able to hear her. She wasn't going to die here, not like this. Not at the hands of the same person who killed her brother. She couldn't tell if they heard her, could only hope. She slumped forward a little, trying to hold herself up so that the blade wouldn't do any more damage. And she hoped they'd hurry.

-------------

In the middle of the fight, Yazoo suddenly paused. He heard it; he was sure he had. Then he heard it again; some one was calling him-_she_ was calling him. She was in trouble, she needed him. He looked over at Loz, making sure his brother would be alright.

"She's calling me," Yazoo said.

"Who is?" Loz asked, not hearing anything.

"Sister. She needs me," Yazoo responded.

Loz looked unsure, but Yazoo was already leaving.

-----------

Sophronica wasn't sure if she was awake or unconscious for a moment. Only the pain told her that she was still alive. She felt she would have puked-if it weren't for the fact that there was a sword through her stomach. She felt like she was floating, up-side-down, and then she heard a voice, so soft she wasn't sure if she imagined it or not. Again.

"Sophronica?"

She gave a start, jerking her head up and opening her eyes at the sound of her name. Her vision swam, and it took her a moment to focus. Yazoo stood in front of her, gazing at her with the first emotion she'd really seen him show-concern.

"The sword," she whispered, but he already had a hand on the hilt.

He pulled the blade free swiftly, with only a bit of trouble, and her knees buckled just as fast, sending her to the ground, which was slick with her blood. It had pooled around her feet; they were both standing in it. Anyone else would have been dead from such an injury, but she wasn't just 'anyone'.

"Thank…you…" she whispered, her head bent.

She reached blindly for his arm until he took her hand and helped her to her feet. She was deathly pale, and almost slipped again, but he held her up.

"Have…to get to Edge," she said, holding one hand over her wound, which was already ever so slowly beginning to heal, and starting towards Lilith. She left bloody boot prints across the ground as she walked.

"You can't, you're not strong enough," Yazoo said.

She shook her head, determined despite her injury, her pain, and her weakness, "The…Reunion," she insisted

She had reached Lilith, blood still sliding over the hand she had over her wound. She tried to get on, and at the same time, he tried to stop her, pulling her back. She stumbled, fell, and he caught her. Despite this, she was angry at him for trying to stop her, and turned, one hand clenched into a fist that she half raised.

"Ride with me," he said, his voice compelling and soft as velvet, "You're going to be alright."

All the anger drained out of her at his words, and she dropped her arm back down to her side. How could she argue when he was looking at her the way he was, with those beautiful eyes that seemed to pierce straight down into her very soul?

"Fine," Sophronica said, more of a weary sigh, and then added, "Can I have...my sword back?"

Yazoo handed it to her, and even though it was dripping with her own blood, she sheathed it across her back. With some difficulty, she managed to slide onto his motorcycle behind him, wincing as another, lighter, but not by much, wave of pain rolled over her. As they left Sleeping Forest, she discovered that she had trouble keeping her balance, and would slide towards one side or the other, forcing her to continuously hold onto him. Not that either of them minded. She put her hands on his hips and rested her head on his back. She drifted in and out of consciousness, pain bringing her back, though her wound had stopped bleeding. She could tell when they reached Edge because the ride became smoother. With a start she lifted her head; she could've sword she'd heard her brother's voice. Gazing around, she saw that the destruction in Edge was down to a minimal, and sensed that the others were no longer there.

"Midgar," she said to Yazoo.

She felt the movement, more than saw, as he nodded in response. Within minutes, they were on the old highway that led into Midgar.

-------------

They'd just caught up with Kadaj and Loz, and they didn't know yet that she was injured, but they knew something was up because she was riding with Yazoo. She could tell something was wrong before Kadaj spoke.

"You were wrong," he informed her, sounding angry, his silver hair half hiding his eyes, "The President _didn't_ have Mother."

Sophronica gazed at him in surprise, her heart sinking. "No?" was all she could manage.

"You said you knew," he continued. He kept his gaze on the road, but she could see the frustration in his expression, "You weren't even close."

"You were wrong too," she threw back angrily, "We all were."

"Mother's at Northern Crater. Right Kadaj?" Loz said suddenly, interrupting any further arguing.

"Yes Loz," Kadaj replied

Sophronica stayed silent, until Yazoo suddenly turned his head, looking back, past her. So she turned as well, and saw Cloud, gaining on them fast. She narrowed her eyes. Kadaj noticed right after they did, and with a small growl of frustration, accelerated. Loz took this as a cue to do the same, and the two pulled ahead. None of them seemed to be in the mood to fight, she noticed. She tightened her fingers in the folds of his trench coat as Yazoo sped up as well, her internal equilibrium still screwed up. There was a wide turn, and she glanced back over her shoulder; Cloud was closer. Up ahead, the highway split into two; they all veered to the left. For a moment, the setting sun and fierce wind blinded her, and she felt dizzy. She ducked her head, resting her forehead against his back.

She must've dozed off for a moment because the next thing she knew they were airborne. The landing was rough and slid her arms a little further around him. They were racing across the plains now, and all of a sudden, Cloud appeared out of no where, sword out and ready to fight. She watched in surprise as he headed straight for them-for _her_. But then Kadaj and Loz were there, cutting him off and attacking him from either side. Cloud swerved and blocked. He started to counterattack, but they were ruthless, not giving him a chance. They had him so distracted in fact, that when they veered away, he didn't see the large boulder ahead until it was too late. He tried to swerve to the side, but hit it anyway, the impact almost throwing him from his motorcycle. There was no way he could catch up with them again, and so could only stand there and watch the four of them continue off into the distance.


	7. Chapter 7

**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Seven**

"Where could they be going?" Cloud wondered aloud for the third time as he slowly paced back and forth at Seventh Heaven.

"They didn't find Jenova yet, did they Cloud?" Tifa asked, brushing her dark brown hair nervously back from her face.

"No," he shook his head.

"They must have found out the true location of Jenova's remains," Vincent spoke up from the corner.

"But where is that?" Cloud said, his weariness fueling his frustration.

"Northern Crater."

Cloud stopped pacing and the three of them turned.

"Jenova's head's at Northern Crater," Reno said, slowly coming down the stairs.

---------------

She was cold. But she was hot too. The sun had set about an hour ago, and the night air stung her face, so she kept her head down. She cursed Cloud now even more then ever, because she knew the reason she was reacting so badly to her wound; Draco was enchanted, wounds dealt by it were supposed to heal difficultly. The blade was never meant to be turned against her.

It took her a moment to realize that they had stopped, and only when she was aware that she was standing up did it really sink in. She blinked, feeling as though she'd just awakened from a long dream. She noticed that Kadaj was gazing at her.

"You don't look well," he said.

"I bet you wouldn't either…if you got run through with your own sword," Sophronica replied, wincing a little. She took a moment, then added, "Cloud's…stronger then I thought." '_Of course he would be_,' she said to herself, '_To have killed Sephiroth_.'

"You need to get some rest," Kadaj said softly to her, "We all do." He definitely sounded like he did. Too wary to even seem very concerned about her injury.

---------------------

She was laying half on her side, one arm folded under her head. Her sword was on the ground beside their motorcycles. Yazoo lay on one side of her, Kadaj on her other, his back to her, and on his other side was Loz, who was currently keeping watch. She was shivering a little, mostly just cold now. Despite how tired she was, she was awake, gazing through the darkness at Yazoo. She was studying the features of his face; perfectly smooth skin, the way his hair fell across his forehead, how peaceful he looked when he slept. With her eyes she traced the curves of his lips, and thought to herself how beautiful he was.

Quite suddenly, Kadaj shifted, curled up around himself like a child. He gave a soft whimper, and she thought he was plagued by nightmares. She heard Loz talking quietly to him, and after a few moments, he became calm again. As she gazed at Yazoo's sleeping form, so close to her that his deep, even breaths caressed her face, she realized something with a start, something she'd denied before; she was falling in love. In love with some one she barely knew. Some one she'd come to blows with twice before her 'awakening'. She hardly knew him, but she realized that she cared for him.

The Reunion…what would happen after that? What would happen to Kadaj, to Yazoo, to all of them? Would her brother truly try to destroy the planet, as Cloud had told her? She'd acted like she'd known, but she hadn't. What terrible things had happened during the gap in her memory that could cause her brother to wield such hatred in his heart as to want to destroy the whole planet? She'd always known him to be a kind soul, and he'd loved her very much. He was a warrior, a soldier, in the Shin-Ra army, yes, but that hadn't made him an 'evil' person. She began to feel confused now; she wanted very much to see her brother again, but was now suddenly unsure about the 'reunion'. She didn't know how things would change, what would happen, and she finally admitted it to herself; she felt a little scared. It was with those thoughts in mind that she eventually drifted off into a troubled sleep.

------------------

When she awoke again, the sky was streaked with pale pinks and golds. She lay still for a moment, noticing that her wound didn't seem to feel so bad, and she wasn't so weak. Gazing around, she saw that Kadaj and Loz were asleep, but Yazoo was sitting beside her, keeping watch. He sat with his long legs drawn up to his chest, head turned towards her and the others and resting on his knees. He lifted his head when he saw that she was awake, and for a moment, they gazed at each other, than she carefully sat up.

"How are you?" he asked her quietly.

She shrugged a bit, "Better," she replied, her voice sounding a little hoarse.

"You were talking in your sleep," he said, tilting his head to the side.

"I was?" she said, a little surprised. It took her a second to remember what she'd been thinking about before she fell asleep, and when she did, she worried what she might've said.

"You were saying his name-Sephiroth."

She had been? At least she hadn't said anything about Yazoo-or the Reunion. She didn't reply and they sat there in silence for a few minutes. That wasn't all she'd said, but Yazoo didn't tell her; she'd said his name as well. Most of anything else she'd said she'd mumbled too softly for him to hear. After a moment he realized that he was staring at her, not that she seemed to notice-or maybe she didn't care-and looked away.

---------------

Northern Crater; the wound dealt to the planet from Jenova's arrival two thousand years ago that never healed itself. They were nearing the edge, and it had been a long trek so far. They had to go on foot because the terrain was too rough, steep, and slippery for their motorcycles. Sophronica had cleaned her sword that morning and now the blade glinted in the light as she moved, Yazoo noticed. Every once in a while, she would slip a little, but never lost her balance. Loz was ahead of her, to her left, and Yazoo was on her right, almost beside her. The three of them were following Kadaj, who was swiftly and almost recklessly scaling the side of the crater. The air grew colder the higher they went, and was beginning to grow misty. She shivered, blinking her hair out of her eyes as she raised her head for a moment to see how far off Kadaj was. Then she sighed a little, and lowered her head again. The three of them traveled in silence, but from up ahead, she could hear Kadaj talking to himself, his voice carried down to them on the breeze, something about Mother and Cloud.

All of a sudden, before she had a chance to comprehend, let alone react, Loz slipped and lost his balance. He tried to stop himself from falling, but pitched over backwards anyway. He hit her, knocking her breath away, and she fell as well. The two of them crashed into Yazoo and dragged him down with them. The three of them preceded to tumble about fifteen feet down the side of the crater, a confused, complaining tangle of arms and legs.

"Get _off_ of me you big klutz!" Sophronica exclaimed, reaching blindly behind her to give Loz a shove.

She was half on top of Yazoo, and Loz was on top of her, his elbow digging into her back and causing pain to flare up from her wound. He grumbled something she didn't understand and started to struggle to his feet, but he wasn't moving fast enough for her. Beneath her, Yazoo, besides having to deal with the weight of them both, didn't much mind their current position. Sophronica gave Loz another shove, and Yazoo could see pain in her expression.

"I'm moving as fast as I can," Loz complained.

"Well, move _faster_," she grumbled.

Finally, he found his footing and stood. With a small sigh, she shifted a bit, putting one hand on the ground in front of her and her other on Yazoo's shoulder. She started to push herself up, but only rose a few inches before being jerked back down.

"What's wrong?" Yazoo asked.

Frowning, she didn't respond right away. She bent her head and saw that the buckles on her vest had become snared on the belts across his chest. "We're stuck," she said.

Far ahead of them now, Kadaj paused near the top of the crater and looked back at them. He shook his head and then continued. Sophronica reached between them with one hand, using her other hand to support herself, and tried to untangle them. She didn't have much luck.

"You're stuck? Aww, how sad," Loz said somewhat teasingly.

She couldn't see him, but it sounded like he was laughing.

"_Loz_," Yazoo said with a hint of a warning tone in his voice.

"You'd better not be laughing," she added.

Loz didn't say anything.

"Let me," Yazoo said, pushing her hand aside lightly.

She watched him warily for a second, but of course didn't stop him. The touch of his fingers as he worked to untangle them made her heart jump, but her expression remained for the most part passive. In a few moments they were free and she climbed to her feet.

"Thanks," she said as he stood too.

She looked around then, and noticed that Kadaj was no where in sight. "Hey, where's Kadaj?" she said.

The other two looked around as well.

"Brother?" Yazoo said.

Sophronica swiftly started back up, a bad feeling settling over her. She couldn't really explain it, but she felt like something was wrong. Loz kept pace beside her and Yazoo out-paced them both, moving nimbly. She wondered if he had the same bad feeling that she did. A twinge started in her side again, but she ignored it. She didn't have time to worry about pain. Yazoo reached the edge of the crater first and paused there to wait for Sophronica and Loz. She stumbled a little upon reaching the top, but regained her footing in a second, peering down into the crater. It was dark, misty, and foreboding.

"Kadaj?" Loz called, starting down first.

Yazoo followed, and after a moment, so did she.

"She's here, I know she is," came Kadaj's voice from somewhere ahead of them.

They continued down and finally saw him through the mist.

"Looking for this?"

They turned at the sound of his voice.

"Mother!" Kadaj exclaimed.

"Cloud," Sophronica growled, narrowing her eyes.

Cloud stood about twenty feet away, farther up the side of the crater, and in one hand he held a containment box with the Shin-Ra logo on it-Jenova's head.

"Give her to me!" Kadaj said, pushing past Loz and Yazoo and drawing Souba.

Sophronica suddenly saw Vincent, Reno, and Rude through the gloom behind Cloud. So did the other three, but none of them hesitated. There was a reverberating clash as Cloud blocked Kadaj's fierce sword blow. For the moment she left her own sword sheathed as she moved towards Cloud as well. All of a sudden, she caught swift movement and a flash of red hair from her right and started to turn. Everything was a blur for a second as she felt a start of pain in her shoulder and side and tumbled back head-over-heels. She slid awkwardly for a few feet before she stopped herself. Looking up as she stood, she saw Reno. She narrowed her eyes a little; he wouldn't catch her off guard again.

"So that's how it's gonna be, huh?" she said.

"And I'm just getting started," he replied, and his cocky attitude made her smirk.

"Good," she said darkly as she gave him a once-over; he didn't look so bad considering what Kadaj and the others had done to him. But then she also had to consider that there had been Cloud and Tifa and the others to take care of his wounds. "It'll make if more interesting to kick your ass." She concluded, sauntering towards him.

Then she leaped the last few feet and threw a punch in midair that he barely managed to dodge. Her fist grazed his shoulder, and then she landed on one knee, her knuckles connecting with the rough ground and splitting the skin a bit. She cursed softly at the stinging pain.

"A little reckless, aren't you?" he commented tauntingly.

"Always," she replied, getting to her feet and launching a round house kick that hit him in the chest and knocked him back off his feet.

Gunfire was ringing in her ears now, along with the clashing of blades. She risked a glance around at the fighting that surrounded her, and then returned her attention to Reno, who was climbing to his feet. He came at her, swinging his stun rod, and she ducked, nailing him across back with a kick. He stumbled, but shook off the blow and kept his balance.

"That the best you've got?"

"You're about to find out," she answered, voice almost a growl.

She started to deliver a snap kick, but some thing caught her attention for some reason, like a hook that pulled her eyes to the side and the turned her head. Her gaze flitted over the battling around her, coming to rest on Yazoo just as Vincent leveled his gun at him and fired, too close and too swift to be dodged. Yazoo's body jerked once, twice, then he fell back, vanishing through the fog.

"Yazoo!" she yelled.

Her shout caught Loz's attention and he paused for a second from fighting Rude to look around. Suddenly, something struck her across the face with a crack, splitting the skin over her cheekbone and alighting a flare of pain. She stumbled back and turned. The darkness that had filled her eyes, a mix of rage and confusion, startled Reno. She finally drew Draco, ignoring the blood now trickling down her face. She struck at him and he blocked with his stun rod. Again and again she swung her sword, sparks flying as she drove him back. Then she turned, energy crackling down Draco's blade to burst into flames. She hurled the first fireball at Cloud, forcing Kadaj to dive out of the way. She unleashed the second at Vincent. She was already weak, and this took more of her energy. A faint throbbing began in her head, and blood started to flow from her nose even as she whirled to deflect a punch from Reno. She was too distracted though, to react in time to block the kick that nailed her in the stomach. She fell to one knee, her breath knocked away and pain flaring from her stab wound. Blood dripped from her face to the ground, and with a growl she rose to her feet, swinging her sword around in a deadly arch at Reno.


	8. Chapter 8

**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Eight**

Sophronica sheathed her sword across her back after watching Cloud and the others retreat. She was bruised and a little bloody, struggling for a second to catch her breath again, as were Kadaj and Loz. But what about…?

"Yazoo," was all she said before starting down to find him.

The other two followed close behind. Neither of them had seen Yazoo since…. And Sophronica was worried. She got ahead of Kadaj and Loz in her rush, and found Yazoo at the bottom of the crater where the ground leveled out. He was sprawled on his back, Velvet Nightmare a few feet from one hand. She knelt at his side and saw that'd he'd been shot twice in the shoulder and the side of his chest.

"Yazoo," she said, reaching slightly trembling fingers to his face. His soft breath tickled her hand and assured her that he was still alive. "Yazoo," she repeated. She looked up at the approach of Kadaj and Loz. "He's been shot," she said.

"Brother," Kadaj said, kneeling on the other side of him, and the worry and concern was plain to hear in his voice.

When he got no response from Yazoo, he cast Cure on him.

"Is he going to be alright?" Loz asked from where he stood behind Sophronica, sounding like he was trying not to cry.

Neither she nor Kadaj answered him as they anxiously awaited a reaction from Yazoo, since the Cure didn't look like it had much affect. Finally, after what seemed like forever but was in reality only about a minute or so, he stirred. His beautiful blue-green cat's eyes opened and he blinked up at the three of them, seeming confused for a moment.

"You had us all worried, brother," Kadaj told him, and still sounded worried.

"I'm alright," Yazoo said, struggling for a second to sit up, and when he did it was with a small wince that he tried to hide. "Don't cry, Loz," he said, looking up at his older brother.

"I'm not crying," Loz protested.

Yazoo managed a small smile at this, something he'd heard many times before, but it was a pained smile.

"Are you really alright?" Sophronica asked him softly.

He turned his gaze to her. "Yes," he replied after a moment, and started to get to his feet.

She stood as well and moved a couple of steps back to give him room. When he bent to pick up Velvet Nightmare, she noticed that he wasn't really using his left arm-he'd been shot in the left shoulder. Maybe he wasn't as alright as he claimed to be.

"Mother?" he suddenly asked.

"Big brother got away…and he took Mother with him," Kadaj responded.

"Why does he keep her from us?" Loz asked, sounding sad once more.

"He's jealous," Kadaj said venomously, "That Mother wants up and not him, that he's not special."

Sophronica started back up the crater wall first; she wanted to get out of here. An odd feeling had come over her, sunk down to her very bones. It wasn't so much an ominous feeling, as an almost familiar one. She found herself glancing back over her shoulder, eyes scanning the gloom, as if she expected to see…no. Of course not. It would be impossible, she told herself.

"Come on," she said to them, "We should go."

Yazoo nodded and followed after her. So did Kadaj and Loz. They trekked back up in silence, and she shivered every once in a while. The cut across her face was bruised and had swollen a little, and her side was a bit sore. It was only when they were almost at where they'd parked their motorcycles that Sophronica noticed how much blood was on Yazoo, and that he was still bleeding. The splashes of dark red had been literally invisible against his black leather trench coat in the gloom before.

"Hey," she said, stopping him with a gentle hand against his chest, "You're still bleeding."

"I'm fine," he protested.

She ignored him and peered closer at his shoulder. She realized then the reason that the Cure hadn't done much good; the bullets were still lodged in his flesh. It was something she'd seen dozens of times from being in the Shin-Ra Army and knew how to take care of.

"Those bullets are still in your shoulder, they need to be taken out before it'll heal," she said.

He gazed at her incredulously for a second, "Right now?" he said. "We can't stop here; there's no cover. What if we are attacked again?"

She looked around at Kadaj and Loz for support; they were his brothers after all. Loz just shrugged a little, looking unsure. Kadaj gazed at her and nodded.

"Let's fine cover first though," he said.

And that was the end of that argument; whatever Kadaj said was final. They walked the last few yards to their motorcycles in silence. Sophronica reached Yazoo's motorcycle first and turned back to him with her arms crossed.

"I'm driving," she said firmly in a no-nonsense tone, a faint air of arrogance about her.

"I'm perfectly capable of driving myself," Yazoo insisted, surprised by her once again.

"No you're not," she said simply, turning and throwing one leg over the bike. She looked back at him, still standing there. "Unless you'd care to walk."

He sighed softly, "You're used to getting your way, aren't you?" he said, getting on behind her.

"Yes," she said, starting the engine.

They took off across the rocky semi-plain, she and Loz basically flanking Kadaj. They continued through an intriguingly green forest until nightfall. It was intriguing because everything seemed to be green; the trees, the forest floor, rocks and tree trunks covered in green moss. It was like being inside a giant emerald, and it was probably even more interesting during the day. They came across an abandoned house in a small clearing. At least, it looked abandoned from the outside. They stopped in the clearing, and Kadaj gazed thoughtfully up at the building.

"This will do," he said at last, standing beside his motorcycle.

He was the first through the door of course, which groaned its protest at being opened. Loz followed him, but Sophronica paused outside for a moment, gazing around at the forest and dark night sky, until Yazoo got tired of waiting behind her on the porch steps and pushed her lightly through the doorway. The place had power and running water, which was enough for them.

In an upstairs room, Sophronica laid her sword on the table beside the bed, and rummaged around in the bathroom until she found a dish and a towel. Returning to the bedroom, she found Yazoo sitting on the bed watching her. She set the towel and dish down beside him and started to tug off her long gloves. Once they were off, one of the reasons she wore them became visible. Thin scars criss crossed up her arms from the backs of her hands to her elbows. Clean, precise scare, like from wounds inflicted by a sharp blade.

"How did you get those scars?" Yazoo asked her with a small frown.

She smiled, but it was a bitter, twisted smile, "I was sick once," she replied, "Almost drove me fucking crazy. So I found a way to keep sane." That was a very painful memory indeed, and pieces of it came drifting to the surface of her consciousness.

_She was slumped in the corner of her quarters. They'd told her she was going to be alright, hadn't put her under medical observation yet, and she was to take that as a good sign. They told her it could have been worse, but she disagreed. It was hot, too hot, and even as she ripped off her long jacket, she acknowledged the fact that the unbearable crawling feeling was in her mind. There was nothing she could do about it. She was flushed, her eyes burning red, and if they knew just how bad she'd gotten, they wouldn't be fucking telling her that 'it could get worse', they would know that _this_ was the worst. She held a long bladed dagger in her trembling fingers, the light reflecting off of it stinging her eyes. She waved a hand, and blue energy crackled from her fingertips to meet the over head light and result in the bulb exploding, showering bits of glass over the room. That was better. _

_She returned her attention to the dagger now that the room was comfortably dark. She didn't carry daggers or have any herself; she'd lifted this one off of one of the guards, in fact, with out his ever noticing. The crawling sensation was growing worse, feeling like insects were crawling under her skin. She was ready to scream, or better yet, find the doctor that given her this experimental drug and personally telling him that it didn't work like it was supposed to. That was a good idea, except for the fact that her legs felt numb. The crawling feeling, she had to stop it, had to, or she was going to go fucking crazy. That's right; the dagger. Without even a second thought, she drew it across the back of her left hand, a long clean cut from which blood bubbled up. She didn't even feel the pain._

_The terrible feeling subsided for a moment, but then returned just as bad as ever. Gritting her teeth, she slid the blade across her arm again. The pounding in her head felt like it was fading a little bit as well now, though she couldn't say why, she was just grateful it did. Her blood dripped from the dagger's blade as she cut herself again. She started with the backs of both hands, and then worked up. She was starting to feel the pain now, a stinging accompanied by her blood trickling down her arms. She welcomed the feeling; at least she could feel _something_ besides the pounding in her head and the crawling sensation. She was calming down too, or so she thought until the door to her quarters opened._

"_Sophronica?" a head slowly appeared around the edge of the door._

_Her insane rage returned and she threw the dagger. He ducked back out and the blade embedded through the door instead, narrowly missing him._

"_You've gotten worse," he called to her, voice muffled by the door._

"_You fucking think so?" she replied, voice dripping with anger and sarcasm._

"_Are you going to try to kill me again if I try to help you?"_

_She didn't answer for a moment, drawing her legs up and resting her arms on her knees, palms up so the blood dripped onto the floor and not her. "I guess I won't," she said, voice more of a growl._

_He cautiously pushed the door open again, all the way this time, illuminating her and causing her to turn her head aside due to the bright lights out in the hallway. Even though she couldn't see them, she knew there were guards out there as well, ready to handle the situation if she got out of control._

"_Shit," Reno said when he saw that she was bleeding, had cut herself, "What the fuck did you do?"_

She broke from her reverie, and blinked, realizing that Yazoo was gazing at her. She put her gloves down next to her sword and turned back to him.

"Take off your jacket," she said.

He continued to gaze at her, raising one eyebrow.

"What, are you shy?" she said somewhat teasingly, "It's the only way I can treat your shoulder."

After a second he tugged off his own gloves and set them aside. He undid the belts across the front and unzipped his long coat. He stood to take it off, but had trouble; the leather stuck to his skin over his left shoulder. She moved to help him, and he winced as she peeled his coat away from his shoulder. After that it just slipped off. She averted her gaze as he sat down again, and picked up the towel. It wasn't that his wounds were seriously bad, it was that he wore no shirt under that coat he'd always had zipped up to his neck, and she didn't want to stare. She wanted to focus on the task at hand. She began to softly clean away that blood so she could see the wounds clearly. He saw completely still and watched her.

"You seem like you've done this before," he commented softly after a moment.

"Yeah," she said, "Being in the Shin-Ra Army you experience a lot." She wrung out the now bloody towel over the dish and put it aside. "This is the hard part," she said, pausing and looking up at him.

"Just do it, I'll manage," Yazoo said.

She refrained from voicing the slightly sarcastic remark that came to her mind and merely nodded. She dug out the first bullet from his shoulder-it was the easy one. She dropped it in the dish, where it landed with a metallic clink. Her fingers were now covered in his blood and trembling slightly, so she paused. She glanced up at him and he looked back at her with a forced passive expression. He nodded, meaning both that he was fine and that she should continue. She stilled her trembling fingers and went to work getting out the last bullet. This one was more difficult, so she was more careful.

When she finally got it, she dropped it in the dish beside the first one and wiped off some of the blood on her hands with the towel. She also used it to wipe away the fresh blood from his shoulder. She gently ran her fingertips over his skin, and in the wake of her touch, the bullet wounds ceased bleeding and began to slowly seal. She offered him a small smile as she stood and took the towel and dish into the bathroom. There she washed the rest of the blood off her hands and stood there for a moment, gazing at her reflection in the cracked mirror. She shook her head a little at the thoughts running through her head and left the bathroom again.

He was still sitting there, but in the short time that she'd been gone, he'd taken off his boots. She was tired, and wanted to get to sleep, but found herself unwilling to leave the room. She stood there in the doorway, gazing at him. All the emotions and thoughts she'd kept locked away at the back of her mind began to trickle through and soon flooded her consciousness. She hoped it didn't show in her eyes, the way she was looking at him. And at the same time hoped it did. She started towards the door to leave.

"Wait," Yazoo said, standing.

She complied, lowering her out stretched hand from the door knob and turning.

He wanted to say something to her, to tell her, but suddenly couldn't. "Thank you," he said instead. He had walked right up to her, and now her presence was almost too close for him to resist.

"You're welcome," she replied in an even tone as if she couldn't see it in his eyes that he was thinking what she had been.

She didn't fool herself or him, and it was made even more obvious when her own hands betrayed her, lifting to trail down his chest, his skin silken smooth and perfect. And then, before he could think of what the consequences would be if she _didn't_ feel the same, he moved the one step that was in between them and lowered his mouth to hers. The kiss was soft, shy at first, and it surprised her, but she wasn't upset. She kissed him back, tilting her head to the side and parting her lips. Her hands snaked up, through his long soft hair like molten silver to the back of his neck. She felt his velvet tongue slide into her mouth and a soft noise like a sad sigh and a moan both rose in her throat. And then it was over. She bowed her head to rest her forehead on his chest.

"What's wrong?" Yazoo asked, suddenly worried that he'd upset her.

"Nothing," Sophronica replied after a moment, her lips against his skin as she laid a kiss over his collarbone, and it was true.

She lifted her head and this time she kissed him. That was it; he couldn't hold back any longer, he was sure now. About what he felt and what he wanted. He put his hands on her waist and started to walk backwards. She only paused to try and kick her boots off, but she couldn't manage it without using her hands, so he pulled her back onto the bed with him and helped her get her boots off. He laid her back, working to undo the four buckles across her vest, and then pulling the zipper down. She rose up a little bit to get it over her shoulders, and tossed it aside. Pants came off last, first his, then hers. He kissed the side of her neck, the sensitive spot just below her earlobe, at the same time running his fingers lightly up the insides of her arms until he took her hands in his and pulled them over her head to hold them there. He trailed his kisses lower. And lower…

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They were both lying on their sides, gazing at each other in a moment of silence. She had one arm curled beneath her head and with her other hand was stroking his damp hair back from his face. Her breathing was almost even again, and her mind was a jumble of thoughts and feelings with only one coherent; wow. If possible, he seemed even more beautiful now. The beauty of an angel, the mischievousness of an imp. He lifted one hand to trace a pattern along her hip and she smiled softly. She brushed a last stray lock of silver hair back and as she withdrew her hand he kissed her fingertips. He curled his arm around her waist and pulled her closer. She lifted her face to be kissed and their tongues met. She slid her arms around him and moved even closer, draping one leg over his. She laid her head on his arm, forehead touching his chest and breath tickling his skin.

"Love you," she whispered, more of a contented sigh, and closed her eyes.

He was surprised at this, and by the time he replied, "Love you too," she was already asleep.

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A/N: Whew, that was kind of hard to write for some reason, lol, but interesting. so, what do you all think so far? 


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: -**Sad little puppy face- come on, all you people who I know are reading this fic, haven't any of you got some nice things to say? Reveiws make me happy, like if I were a plant, reviews would be my fertilizier...yeah, that sounded weird, but it's 'cuz i'm bored. Anyway, enough babble, here's the next chapter. Enjoy.

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**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Nine**

Yazoo awoke to Sophronica straddling his hips, her hands on his arms as she trailed kisses across his chest.

"Good morning," she said when he opened his eyes.

She had let her hair out from its usual low pony tail and now it cascaded down her shoulders like a silver waterfall. He pulled her down for a kiss, and she caught his lower lip lightly with her teeth when she withdrew.

"Morning," he said, running his hands through her hair and down her back.

Reluctantly she got off of him to get dressed. She put on her pants first, as did he before he stood. She had zipped up her vest and was starting on the buckles when he came up behind her, sliding his arms over hers and doing the buckles for her. She tilted her head back against his chest with a smile and he kissed her forehead. Then she suddenly remembered.

"How's your shoulder?" she asked, turning around to face him.

"Better," he replied simply.

"Better?" she repeated, "It's a lot better."

She was surprised; the bullet wounds had almost completely healed. She ran her hand lightly over his shoulder, shaking her head a little. It was at that moment the door opened and she turned.

"Good; you're up," Kadaj said, not showing his surprise that Sophronica was with Yazoo. The full possible meaning of this did not dawn on him though, "We're leaving soon."

Yazoo nodded, "Where are we going?" he asked.

"Home," Kadaj replied. He meant the Forgotten Capital, because they didn't have a real home. Then he left the room to go wake up Loz.

"What about Jenova?" she asked, turning back to Yazoo.

He shrugged a little, "Kadaj is the only one who can hear her; she must want us to go back towards Midgar."

Considering this for a moment, she picked up her gloves from the table and pulled them on. That…sounded fairly reasonable, she supposed. She sat down on the bed to put her boots on as he slipped into his coat and looked around for his own gloves. She merely sat there watching him and listening to footsteps on the stairs. At last, she stood again, sliding her sword into its sheath across her back. He retrieved Velvet Nightmare and then they went down the creaky old stairs to the first floor. They heard voices from the kitchen and went that way. Sophronica pushed open the old swinging door. Loz was opening cabinet after dusty empty cabinet, grumbling that he was hungry. Kadaj sat at the kitchen table watching him with a slightly amused expression.

"You're not going to find anything, Loz," he said.

"It's worth looking," Loz replied hopefully.

Yazoo entered the room behind Sophronica, taking a seat at the table beside Kadaj, while she leaned against the wall beside the door, still a little aloof from them. Loz opened the last empty cabinet to find it empty as well and sighed.

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When they left, she rode with Yazoo, as before, and this was more then just fine with her for many small reasons. As they raced through the forest, she ran her fingers up and down his sides, noting that he shivered a little under her touch. For the most part, they traveled in silence, until Loz's humming could actually be heard over the engines.

"Would you mind shutting up?" Kadaj called over to him.

Loz ignored him and continued humming.

"Loz!"

He continued to ignore him.

Kadaj shook his head, "At least he's not singing," he muttered, then added louder, "His singing's even worse then Yazoo's." He couldn't pass up the opportunity to tease his brothers.

"Not nearly as bad as _yours_," Yazoo replied.

"You sing?" Sophronica asked him, her tone both slightly amused and curious.

She couldn't see his expression, but she did see the flush creep across the back of his neck.

"No," he said.

"At least _I_ don't sound like a dying cat," Kadaj said.

"Hey!" Loz protested, clearly insulted.

"It's alright Loz, he didn't mean it," Yazoo said.

"Yes I did," Kadaj said.

Loz grumbled something that none of them understood.

"Don't be such a baby," Kadaj said to him.

Loz fell silent at this and further refused to speak to them.

"You sing?" Sophronica asked Yazoo again, poking him in the ribs.

"I said no!" he protested.

Kadaj looked over at them, "Of course he does; he's just being shy," he said, "In fact, he loves to sing-"

"Kadaj!" Yazoo suddenly interrupted in a tone that said that was enough.

With a soft snicker, his younger brother complied.

After a while, in the distance, Sophronica saw the ruins of Midgar looming larger. It seemed they were going to pass through a part of the old city to get to the Sleeping Forest. There was a brief rough transition as they passed from the rocky plains to the half destroyed highway, swerving around large pieces of rubble. Later, when she thought back, she would never be sure exactly what happened or how, but it happened. Kadaj saw something and shouted, Yazoo tried to swerve to a halt, and then it seemed like _everything_ was exploding around them, the very air itself was on fire. The next thing she knew she was flying, and then falling, waving her arms stupidly in an attempt to grab something to slow her descent. She hit the ground-or was in rubble?-hard enough to rattle her teeth and send pain out through every nerve ending in her body. Consequently, she blacked out.

She woke up coughing due to dust, and the faint sound of engines far above. The air was hot as she blinked her hair out of her eyes and struggled to sit up. What the fuck was going on? Licking her dry lips and clearing the dust from her throat, she looked around, her eyes burning a little.

"Yazoo?" she managed after a moment.

Where were they? Better yet, where was she? Looking up, she saw the old highway they'd been on, and far above that-an airship. She narrowed her eyes. Just fucking great. Climbing to her feet, she swayed a little, dizzy for a moment. After her vision and head cleared, she gazed around for a way back up. She saw none and kicked a chunk of concrete in frustration. It bounced away and clunked against something metallic just out of sight. She gave the sound no second thought, and paced back and forth for a second. She couldn't stay down here, she had to get back up, see if the others were alright. She admitted it to herself; she was worried.

She turned and started walking towards a higher broken slab on concrete, her neck stiff, and something shiny caught her eye. Reluctantly, she paused, her gaze sweeping over the rubble. There. She noticed something very familiar mostly buried, and grabbed the hilt. She pulled it free with a couple of yanks and gazed at it with surprise; Dagon. Her beloved sword that she'd though lost years ago. Pristine and beautiful, though dusty. This rubble must be from part of the old Shin-Ra building, and the explosion unburied it. She inspected the blade for a second, found it unmarred, and sheathed it.

She jumped onto the higher level of concrete and from there leaped the twenty feet or so to the road. She landed lightly, tensed and wary. But there was no one there. Their motorcycles, overturned, but nothing more except the flames that licked at the ground. She raised a hand and wiped away the trickle of blood from a cut on her forehead she'd just noticed and gave a loud growl of frustration.

"Damn you Cloud," she muttered.

How had they managed to take all three of them? And she knew they'd been taken. She didn't know how she knew, she just did. Her rage began to grow; if only she hadn't been knocked so far away from the explosion…. But then what could she have done? She probably would have been knocked out anyway, and captured as well. But maybe not. Shaking her head violently, she drew both her swords and tiled her head back to look up at the airship. Did they know she was there? She found she didn't care. She ran across the highway, leapt onto the concrete divider, and used it to vault into the air. The momentum of her jump sent her up and up, impossibly high, the wind stinging her eyes as she neared the side of the airship. She raised her swords in front of her, energy crackling down the blades, and used them to carve herself an entrance into the hull of the airship-the hell with doors.

She landed lightly in the corridor beyond, the wind from behind her whipping at her hair and clothes. All that and she was barely breathing hard. She looked up and down the corridor, deciding which way to go. Where was that blonde bastard? She randomly picked a direction and stalked down the hall, her eyes reflecting her fury. She'd find them sooner or later-there was no way they could hide. She followed the hall around to the right and could suddenly hear voices from up ahead. Her lips curled into a cruel, mirthless smirk, and she kicked the door open. Inside the room were Cloud and Tifa, each flinching at her sudden arrival, each seeming surprised to see her at all.

"Where the fuck are they?" Sophronica demanded, stepping through the doorway and glaring at them both.

"How did you-?" Tifa started.

"Shut up," Sophronica snapped, waving Dagon at her.

By some unseen force, Tifa flew back and hit the wall.

"Tifa!"

"Where are they?" Sophronica repeated, talking over Cloud, her angry gaze locked onto him.

"It doesn't matter," he replied, drawing his own sword. She reminded him so much of Sephiroth, her temper, her eyes, her tone of voice, the very way she was standing there. There was definitely no doubt that they were related.

"Yes, it does; it's the difference of if I kill you now, or later," she said.

"It's over; just accept that," he said.

She shook her head, "You're wrong," she growled.

And then she rushed at him with her swords raised. She struck at him with both blades in an x pattern. He blocked and she drew her swords down, resulting in sparks and a metallic screech. She struck at him again, forcing him to back up. When she lowered her swords for a moment it gave him the chance to counterattack, and he swung his blade at her. She blocked with Dagon and delivered a kick to his stomach. Not giving him a chance to recover-and why should she?-she brought Draco around from the right. He managed to dodge out of the way. She brought Dagon around from the other direction. He blocked once more, but only after her blade cut through his shoulder. Not a life threatening wound, but she hoped it hurt nonetheless.

For a moment their blades locked, and it was a battle of strength. She swung Draco around and knocked his sword away. He struck at her and she brought Dagon up. The force of the blow reverberated up her arm but did no damage. She pulled both blades around in an arch and he was forced to duck-either that or lose his head. He moved to the side, attacking her while she was still recovering her balance. She, in response, dropped to the floor, lashing out at his legs with a couple of kicks that took him down with her. She was back up on her feet first and plunged Dagon down at him. He rolled to the side and she repeated the attack with Draco. This time he deflected it with his own sword and pushed her back, giving him the second he needed to stand. She was already swinging Draco at him and he moved fast to parry. It was only a distraction though, because she brought Dagon around at him in a move that slashed a bleeding line across his arm. He grunted, but didn't back down.

At this moment she launched a round house kick that caught him in the shoulder, resulted in a pop, and spun him around. He stumbled, managing to stop himself from falling, and clutched at his shoulder with his other hand. His left arm hung down at his side and she noted with satisfaction that she'd dislocated his shoulder, if not worse. She swung her swords around at him and he blocked somewhat awkwardly. All he could do was continue to block as she drove him backwards. And then she struck the final blow. She slipped in under his defense and plunged Dagon into his side.

"Cloud!" Tifa shouted.

Sophronica didn't pay her any attention; she just drove her sword deeper. He grimaced, but didn't cry out. He was close though, she could see it in his eyes. "_Now_ it's over," she growled.

She withdrew her blade, swung it around and prepared to deliver another blow. She could hear Tifa shouting, but blocked out her voice. Suddenly she stopped. Something caught her eye, and she turned her head. Off in the corner of the room; the box with Jenova's remains.

"What do we have here?" she said, lowering Dagon and sheathing Draco. Leaving Cloud bleeding there, she walked over and picked up the box. "I'll be taking this," she said.

"No."

She turned back to him, "And how are you going to stop me?" she taunted.

She tilted her head to the side, suddenly aware of footsteps far down the hall, heading closer. She turned and kicked open the door to the next room. This one had one wall lined with windows, and as her gaze scanned it, she saw-the three of them. Loz was trying to wake Kadaj, who was unconscious, and Yazoo was sitting with his back against the wall, his eyes unfocused.

"Sophronica!" Loz said, looking up.

She walked over to them, "Is everyone alright?" she asked.

"I…I don't know," he replied worriedly.

Kadaj was beginning to stir as she knelt in front of Yazoo, setting her sword down beside her. The look in his eyes scared her, like he wasn't really there. Like he was dreaming.

"Yazoo," she said.

She got no response. She glanced over her shoulder, hearing the approaching footsteps growing louder, closer. They had to get out of here-and soon. She turned back to him, taking his face in her hands and tilting his head towards her.

"Yazoo," she repeated.

She saw a flicker go through his eyes, but nothing more as Kadaj sat up beside her. She was only barely aware of his movements though; her entire attention was focused on Yazoo. What was wrong with him? She said what she did next before she really considered it.

"Tenshi."

For some reason, _that_ worked, and after a second he shifted his gaze to her, his eyes focusing. He didn't say anything, but he didn't have to.

"Mother?"

The sound of Kadaj's voice made her remember that she was still holding the box. She shifted a little to the side.

"Yeah, I found her," she said, and held out the box to him.

He took it, clutching it tightly, and she picked up her sword, ready to stand.

"Are you alright?" she asked Yazoo softly.

He simply nodded.

She gazed at him for a moment more, than nodded herself and got to her feet. She turned to the line of windows, able to see the ruins of Midgar through them, and an idea of escape formed in her mind. Energy crackled down Dagon's blade and she swung her sword. The energy shattered the windows, sending glass flying, and a breeze whipped through.

"Come on," she said, glancing back at the three of them.

"We can't jump!" Loz protested.

"Yes, we can," Sophronica said.

"Loz is right-for once," Kadaj spoke up from behind them.

"It's the only way!" She insisted, whirling around to face him.

As she did, she saw the others close to coming through the doorway, and with them, supported by Tifa, was Cloud. Sophronica growled low in her throat, basically a scary sound, and flames erupted down the edges of her sword, licking the air and forcing Loz and Kadaj to back away-or risk being burned. The flames grew along with her emotions, and she swung Dagon around over her head once, than let fly a fireball that dwarfed her previous ones. It flew towards Cloud and the others until something collided with it-some one's attempt to stop it. It resulted in an explosion that rocked the whole airship and sent her flying backwards, through the shattered windows. She thought she shouted 'oh shit', but couldn't hear her own voice. Then she was falling-again. As the wind whipped at her, she caught a glimpse of Yazoo falling past her, and then she saw nothing. Nothing but blackness.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Yay! A review, I'm so happy now! Thankies, I'm glad some one likes my fic. Of course I shall keep writing, I even have a short sequel in the planning :)**

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**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Ten**

She was floating. At least, that's what it felt like. She could tell there was a light somewhere beyond the confines of her closed eyes, and a shadow was falling across her. But…hadn't there been an explosion…? Everything falling, on fire…?

"Sophronica."

She knew that voice; strong, deep, reassuring. Close to her heart, which was doing a flip-flop right about now. Her eyes didn't seem to want to open, so she spoke instead.

"Seph…Sephiroth?"

"You're alright now; it's all over."

Could it be true? She had to open her eyes, had to assure herself that he was real, not a memory or a figment of her imagination. She forced her eyes open; it felt like some one had tied weights to her eyelids. For a minute, everything was out of focus, the evening sun too bright and stinging her eyes. But then her vision cleared and she saw that he was holding her in his arms, that's why she felt like she was floating. She lifted gaze to his handsome face, almost afraid that it wasn't true. He was looking down at her, a small smile gracing his lips. Yes-he was just as she'd always remembered him; the same cat's eyes that only took on a certain glow when she was around, the same silver hair, even longer then her own.

"It's really you," she whispered.

"Sophronica!"

She blinked. Where was that voice coming from? It seemed…familiar somehow. She blinked again, and things began to change; the intensity of the evening sun remained the same, but the face before her was no longer that of her twin brother. No, she was gazing up into Yazoo's worried green eyes. They were on the rooftop of an old building, and he was kneeling beside her, half holding her up. Her heart sank just about as fast as she'd been falling before, and she lifted her head to gaze around. Loz was a couple yards away, flat out on his back, seemingly too exhausted to move, and Kadaj was crouched near the edge, holding the box containing Jenova's remains tightly to his chest.

She felt like screaming; it had all been a dream? A damn dream? Something tickled her fingers and she looked down; a single black feather floated back and forth in the palm of her left hand. She frowned a little; it was not a bird's feather, she knew that for a fact. She closed her hand around it and closed her eyes again.

"Sophronica?"

"I'm fine," she told him through gritted teeth.

She opened her eyes and sat up the rest of the way. Looking down at the feather again, she tucked it into her glove for now.

"How many times have you blown us up now?" Loz called over to her.

"Shut up. We're alive, aren't we?" she replied in a mutter, resting her head on her hands, an ache behind her temples.

And then she remembered. She lifted her head and got to her feet. She had almost reached Kadaj when he slid the top off of the containment box. He froze, and as she got close enough to peer over his shoulder, she saw why; it was empty. Cloud and the others must have destroyed Jenova's remains. Bastards.

"Mother?" Kadaj whispered.

"Mother!" he screamed in anguish.

At this, she flinched. Behind them, Yazoo turned and Loz sat up.

"Kadaj," Sophronica said softly, reaching out a hand to his shoulder. Her own mind was in turmoil; no wonder Cloud hadn't tried very hard to stop her from taking the box.

He jerked away from her touch. "This is your fault," he said bitterly.

"What?" she said in surprise.

"If you had stopped him _before_, Mother would still be here."

She blinked, started to say, "I-there was-"

Suddenly, he was standing, dropping the box and drawing Souba. He whirled, bringing his double bladed sword up vertically in an attack that would seriously wound her. She stumbled back though, and fell, so the blades only grazed her vest and caught a bit of her hair, severing it.

"Kadaj!" Yazoo and Loz said in unison.

"There's nothing that can be done about that now!" she said, gazing up at him, her eyes wide and bewildered.

But Kadaj wasn't listening. He plunged his sword down at her and she rolled to the side, drawing Draco as she rose. He turned to face her and struck at her. She raised Draco and there was a resulting clash of metal. He swung Souba at her again, and again she blocked. She didn't want to fight him, but it seemed he was leaving her no choice. She pivoted to the side to avoid his next attack and brought Draco around in an arch. Despite her reluctance, the fight didn't last long. He blocked her attack, but was off balance from it, and when she attacked him again, she knocked him to one knee and sent his sword spinning. The tip of her blade was lightly under his chin before he could blink. Yazoo and Loz hadn't even reached them yet to stop the fight.

She gazed down at Kadaj, seeing that there was no longer any anger in his eyes. In fact, he seemed afraid, as if he truly expected her to kill him. But of course she didn't. She lowered Draco to her side and let it slip from her fingers to land on the rooftop. She dropped to her knees beside him, close to being at eye level with him.

"It's alright," she said softly, all the anger and will to fight draining away from her, "I understand. I feel the same way, but it's not the end, okay?" She had understood that he was upset at loosing Mother, Jenova, and had wanted desperately some one to blame, so he had picked her.

He gazed at her with eyes starting to fill with tears, and with a jolt she suddenly realized how young he was. She'd never noticed before, never paid much attention to that detail. But now she wondered; how old was he? Seventeen? And then his actions surprised her; he leaned forward and put his arms around her, hiding his face against her shoulder. As she held him, she ran her fingers down through his hair in a soothing way, and she felt his shoulders shake.

"It's alright, it's alright," she said quietly.

Yards behind them, Yazoo and Loz had stopped in surprise. They'd been fully ready to break up the fight between their youngest brother and Sophronica, but not for this turn of events.

"You're all still upset over Jenova?"

Sophronica jumped, and Kadaj pulled away from her, his expression guarded once more, to grab Souba. She took her own sword and stood as well. The four of them turned, tensed for battle, and saw-Reno. He'd been standing near the opposite side of the rooftop long enough to see almost the whole thing.

She eyed him wearily. "What the hell are you doing here?" she asked.

"Easy, I'm not here for a fight," he replied coolly, gazing at them.

The other three didn't believe him and looked ready to kill him if he made a wrong move, but she did.

"Alright. What do you want then?" she said with a sigh, sheathing Draco.

Kadaj looked over at her with a frown.

"I'm just wondering what you're going to do now," Reno said.

She gazed at him for a moment. "I don't know. Get out of here? Go someplace else. Nothing here matters any more, except…" she let her gaze slide around to Yazoo, Kadaj and Loz, and Reno understood, "Cloud doesn't even matter any more-is he even still alive?"

"Of course," he replied, "And he's extremely pissed off." He paused, "They'll be coming after you again.

She considered this. "Why are you telling us this? Why are you helping us, after everything that's happened?"

"I'm not." Reno said, "I'm helping you. _Because_ of everything before."

She blinked, looked away.

Kadaj snorted. "Come," he said, and Yazoo and Loz started to follow him as he headed across the rooftop to go back down to the highway.

After a moment, Sophronica followed them as well, but paused by Reno. "Thank you," she said quietly, gazing into his blue eyes. "And you know…I did." She didn't need to offer any explanation, because he knew what she meant. "But…you have to forget about me now, okay?"

"That's going to be hard to do," he said.

"I know," she said, looking away for a moment, "For everything I've-"

"I know," Reno said, lightly interrupting her, "We've both done things we regret."

She looked back at him, knowing that he was apologizing as well, and that he forgave her. "I have to go now." She said in what was supposed to be a firm tone.

She leaned forward to kiss him on the cheek, but he turned his head and so she instead kissed him on the lips. It was a short, bittersweet kiss, sparking old memories, because they both knew they'd probably never see each other again. Then she turned, and without a backwards glance, caught up to the other three-all she had now. And he watched her go with pained eyes.


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: yay, thank you for another lovely review :). Yes, Yazoo; yum. Hmm...and Reno. I'm planning on Reno having a part in the sequel as well.

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* * *

Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Eleven**

They were already down on the highway by the time she caught up, straightening their motorcycles and fussing over them.

"What took you so long?" Yazoo asked, looking up.

"Nothing important," Sophronica replied, resisting the urge to glance back over her shoulder.

He didn't seem satisfied with her answer, but she said nothing more. They were all preparing to leave already, seeming as eager as she was to get out of there. She slid on behind Yazoo and they wasted to time in taking off down the road, heading through to the Sleeping Forest.

-----------------------

The four of them stood in the Sleeping Forest now, Sophronica finally reunited with her own beloved motorcycle.

"I think we should go back to that emerald forest," Loz commented, breaking the thoughtful silence.

"No food there," she reminded him, but she had reasons for not going back there.

"Oh, yeah," he said, shoulders slumping a little.

Kadaj had barely spoken a word since…. And they were all a little worried about him.

"What about Junon?" Yazoo spoke up.

Sophronica took one thought about that and shuddered; she'd spent enough time there; Shin-Ra's military headquarters had been there, and she wanted to be as far away from everything Shin-Ra as possible-so she wouldn't be tempted to blow it up and cause more unneeded chaos that would draw Cloud's attention.

"No," she said, shaking her head.

They were all silent as they thought again. They were trying to figure out some place to go before they left so they wouldn't wander aimlessly, but they would if they had to, to get away from Cloud.

"Let's just go, figure out where we're going when we get there, this waiting around is getting fucking old," she was getting frustrated, as shown by the fact that her language was getting worse, as always happened.

Her comment was greeted by silence and she sighed.

"Alright."

At the sound of his voice, they turned their attention to Kadaj. He still had his head bowed and was gazing at the ground.

"Are you sure?" Yazoo asked him.

"Of course I am," Kadaj said, raising his head. He was trying to sound like he was unbothered by what had happened earlier that day, and he was failing.

---------------------

Kadaj had just awoke from a troubling nightmare screaming in rage and anguish. Yazoo and Loz were forced to hold him down to prevent him from hurting himself. They thought he was awake, but Sophronica could tell that he was still asleep, still dreaming. It sent chills down her spike as she lay on her side yards away from them, facing away, mostly forgotten as the two tried to calm their brother. That was alright with her; they thought she was sleeping-as if she could-but this way they wouldn't see her crying. All the emotions she'd kept pent up inside before, never showing them, letting her rage reign, had come forth at last. They certainly were a dysfunctional little 'family' weren't they? Loz, strong but a crybaby. Kadaj, grown up and in charge, yet so young and vulnerable, psychotically devoted to 'Mother'. Yazoo, deadly fighter, caring brother, but lost in his own world most of the time. And herself…grade A original science experiment, just a bundle of deadly secrets. Didn't help that they were all insane-in their own ways.

Curling a fist under her chin, crystalline tears sliding down her cheeks, she suddenly remembered the last time anyone had seen her cry-except her brother…and Reno. She'd just joined the Shin-Ra Army, and been injured on an advanced training mission they'd said she could handle, been dealt a slashing blow from hip to shoulder by a shadow monster. Sephiroth had raged at them for days about that. Then the memory faded, and behind her, Kadaj's screams were facing into sad whimpers. Her own tears were still falling fast and silent, unnoticed by the others, and it was better that way. So she thought.

She heard footsteps coming her way, crunching over the gravel. Some one laid down beside her. She couldn't see, but she knew; Yazoo. The length of his body touched her, his chest against her back. Resting his head on her shoulder, he slid an arm around her waist, and with his other hand brushed her hair back from her face. He began to hum softly, a soothing, haunting tune that she didn't recognize but was enchanted by nonetheless. She made no attempt to hide her tears, and his gloved fingers were light as feathers as he brushed them away. His humming turned into soft singing, and she began to calm both because of his beautiful velvety voice, and the affect the words had on her.

"…_Mind not the pain of losing, and remember I'll be there to break your fall…I'll hear your prayer through the cries of the dying…_"

The rest was lost as the darkness of sleep finally overtook her.

----------------------------

"Wake up!"

Some one was shaking her. No, not her, Yazoo, and he was still curled around her. She opened one eye, still half asleep, and was greeted by the morning sun.

"Stop," she heard Yazoo mutter as he freed an arm to wave behind him.

There was a light kick and he yelped.

"Kadaj!" he shouted, half asleep as well and irritated already by this rude awakening.

Sophronica suddenly found herself laying on her back blinking up at the sky, so fast had Yazoo untangled himself from her and stood. She sat up, watching him advance towards Kadaj, who was backing away with his hands raised.

"Take it easy Yazoo," he said.

Loz was watching them with mild curiosity, unsure of what was going to happen.

"Why must you always annoy me?" Yazoo said.

"_Because_ it's…" Kadaj suddenly changed his mind about what he was going to say, "You weren't waking up."

Yazoo didn't stop.

"Tenshi," Sophronica said, her tone of voice implying that it really wasn't such a big deal, and he should just let it go.

At _this_ he stopped.

"You won't listen to me, but you'll listen to her?" Kadaj said, sounding a little insulted.

Yazoo ducked his head, "I'll always listen to you," he said softly to his brother.

And that was that, Sophronica noted as she got to her feet. She took her swords as she rose and sheathed them across her back. He walked back over to her as she stretched.

"Why do you call me that?" he asked her curiously.

"It fits," she replied honestly.

"But what does it _mean_?" Loz commented.

So much for a _private_ conversation.

"It means _angel_," Kadaj told him.

Loz considered this for a moment. "It fits," he agreed.

Kadaj blinked, as if he'd expected more of a reaction from Loz, than just shrugged. "Shall we leave now?"

Yazoo ran his fingers lightly down the side of her face, giving her a rare true smile before turning. She would be glad when they found some place to stay; she was getting tired of sleeping on the ground, and it would give them all more privacy. She could ask Yazoo about something she wanted to without the other two interrupting. For now, it would have to wait.

------------------------------

She had seen buildings over the ride, and mentioned this to the others. When they got to the top of this ridge, they all stopped. Before them spread out a lush valley with a twisting river that cut through it to empty out into the ocean just beside the city. The city that she'd seen from the other side of the ridge, not too big, not too small.

"Looks promising," she commented.

"We'll see," Kadaj said.

The other two were silent as they studied the valley and the city. Kadaj led them down the slope and across a dirt road that went all the way through to the city. The valley was beautiful and Loz wanted to stop to sightsee, but Kadaj wouldn't let him, telling him there'd be time for that later. Everyone got out of their way quickly when they reached the city, casting nervous, curious glances at the four leather-clad silver haired strangers. They paused there in the middle of the road for a moment, engines idling.

"I like this place," Loz said, looking around.

Sophronica did too. The city was a little grungy, but what city wasn't?

"We'll see," Kadaj said again.

"Perhaps we should see if there is any place suitable to live at before you become too attached, Loz," Yazoo said.

"Yeah…You're right."

"Come." And that was the last thing Kadaj said to them for a while.

They went off down the street at a fair speed, trusting the pedestrians to get out of their way. Nearly across town, one old building in particular caught Sophronica's attention, and she slowed to a stop, gazing up at it thoughtfully. She couldn't say why she found it interesting, she just did. She pulled Lilith into the alley beside it, and walked over to the side door, which had a two-by-four nailed diagonally across it. She glanced around for a second to see if anyone was watching. There was no one. The other three didn't even seem to notice that she was gone yet. She tried the doorknob, and found it locked, so she wrenched it open. The door frame splintered a little as she pushed the door inward, and she wondered if it would still close properly. She ducked under the piece of wood, leaving it where it was, and entered the first floor of the old apartment type building. Her footsteps echoed in the gloom as she looked around. Everything down here was dusty, dirty, and broken. Despite this, she remained curious. She headed to the stairwell and started up. A couple of steps were missing here or there, and they creaked, but that was about the worst of it.

The door to the whole top floor was locked as well, and she guessed that it was because the top floor was one large apartment. She was more careful with this lock, taking the time to jimmy it open. There was another short flight of stairs that opened up into a huge loft. There were support columns spaced around, and for the most part it was empty. There was a kitchen area-sink, cabinets, refrigerator that was no doubt bare, a kitchen table, and a set of chairs. A couch, a fraying oriental rug. There were lots of windows, most of them boarded up. There was a hallway and a line of doors, of which she explored. Three bedrooms and a bathroom. Pausing in the last bedroom, she looked around for a light switch. Bravely she flipped it on, and the lights flickered on with it. Nice. Probably still had running water too. Turning the lights back off, she wondered why this place had been abandoned so fast.

She didn't have long to ponder this, because she suddenly heard footsteps coming up the stairs. She backed against the outer wall of the hallway, where it would be hardest for her to be seen, and silently drew Dagon. Who ever had just entered paused as she moved down the hall slowly, placing one foot carefully in front of the other so the floorboards wouldn't make noise. A shadow fell across the entrance to the hall and she stopped, just a few feet away from the intruder. She tensed, seeing from the shadow that they were armed as well. Not taking any chances about who it might be, she suddenly emerged from where she hid, bringing Dagon forward with a downward swing. The intruder brought their own weapon up and there was a clash of metal. She recognized the weapon first, and then its owner. She instantly lowered her sword.

"Yazoo," she said, holding back her comment about him sneaking around, "How'd you know I was here?"

"I just…knew," he replied, lowering Velvet Nightmare to his side.

It was true; some things he just knew. Like where his brothers were, what their next move would be when they were fighting an enemy. Sometimes what they would say before they said it. It had always been like that.

She let it go at that, "So…what do you think of this place?" she asked, returning Dagon to its sheath.

He turned to look around again, shaking his long silver hair back from his eyes, "It's…nice," he said after a moment.

"You think Kadaj will like it?" she said, stepping out the rest of the way from the hall.

"He'll like it, he'll just be mad he didn't find it first," Yazoo said.

More footsteps were coming up the stairs, a pair of light ones and a pair of heavy ones; Kadaj and Loz. They were both silent for a few minutes as they looked around, Kadaj muttering to himself as he went.

"This is perfect," he declared at last, stretching his arms over his head.

"There are only three bedrooms," Loz called from the hall.

"We'll share," Sophronica and Yazoo said in unison.

She turned to look at him. So they were back to this, were they? They shared a small smile-until Kadaj loudly cleared his throat.

"What?" she said.

He didn't reply, just shook his head. He suddenly seemed sad. Then the expression was gone.

-------------------------------

She was walking down one of the streets, taking in her surroundings. It was best that they all know the layout of the city, for many reasons, and so they'd all split up to 'explore'. People kept staring at her, and she wasn't appreciating the attention. At least people in Edge had gotten used to her, liked her even. But here she was a stranger. As if the swords across her back and whip at her hip weren't bad enough, her hair and eyes drew just as many curious looks. For the most part, she ignored the looks, but when she grew tired of them, she could glare back at them.

She ended this evening's self guided tour down by the docks. It was quiet and tranquil there, the salty air refreshing. She stood there for a couple of minutes, then turned around to head back, as it would be getting dark soon. She got caught up in an unusually large crowd of people, some of them pushing past her, some of them scuttling out of her way under the weight of her glare. Suddenly, she could a glimpse of a shock of silver hair, going in the opposite direction. A head lifted, unfamiliar Mako cat eyes focused on her through a veil of hair. She stopped dead in her tracks at this, getting jostled by people as her eyes widened. She tried to keep track of this odd stranger, but some how lost them, right out from under her nose. The crowd dispersed, and she was left turning in circles trying to figure out what had just happened.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: To kYLz07: Yeah, I know what you mean; there are too few stories where he actually has a girlfriend.

To Cherry: True. And I know, but I love creating original characters, to me it's what makes fanfics interesting; introducing a new character into the plot. "Well I don't get the idea of mary sues" what the hell does that mean?

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**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Twelve**

Sophronica ducked under the two-by-four and kicked the mangled door closed behind her. She started up the stairs, trailing one hand absently along the railing as she went. She was still pondering the odd, but brief, encounter she'd had earlier. She was troubled by it as well, unable to explain it to herself. Unless she and Sephiroth hadn't been Shin-Ra's only science experiments. She reached the last door and slipped through, walking up the last steps. She heard a door close and knew that she wasn't the first one to return. Loz emerged from the hallway, looking guilty about something…or maybe nervous.

"Is something wrong?" she asked.

"What? No. Nothing's wrong, nothing at all. Everything's fine," he said.

Of course, she didn't believe him, but it was at that moment that Yazoo also returned.

He looked at the two of them and frowned a little. "Hasn't Kadaj come back yet?" he asked.

"No," Loz said, shaking his head.

"It's getting dark," Yazoo said. He remembered Kadaj himself telling them all to be back before then.

"But it's not dark _yet_," Sophronica said, looking to one of the windows that wasn't completely boarded up, "Maybe he found something that interests him."

"Perhaps…" Yazoo said, but he didn't sound convinced.

"He'll be alright," she said.

But that's what she'd said a while ago, and it was dark now. Kadaj was still out.

"I'm going to look for him," Yazoo said.

"Me too," Loz stood from where he'd been at the kitchen table.

It was a very quick decision, and when Yazoo looked over at Sophronica, she simply nodded. But it meant that she would help too. Of course she would. They didn't speak a word, but when they got down to the street, they split up, heading different ways through the city. It looked so much different at night, more unfamiliar, but she managed to navigate fairly decently. The whole time she walked, usually some sort of neon sign reflecting in her eyes, she didn't see Kadaj. She glanced without much interest as the shops she passed, apartment buildings and such. She walked the familiar path she'd taken earlier that evening, ending up at the docks just like before.

Her gaze swept the area, and even though she could see better in the dark then most humans, she saw nothing. Giving a soft frustrated growl, she kicked at the ground and started to turn away to continue her search else where. When she saw a flash of silver hair, brighter in the moonlight, down by the end of one of the docks. She stopped, turned back. Was it…? A bit cautious, she walked across the wooden planks, which groaned softly under foot. As she drew closer, she could tell it was him, sitting at the end of the dock with his knees drawn up to his chest. He seemed to be gazing intently out at the ocean.

"Kadaj?" she said softly when she had reached him.

She was sure he'd heard her, but he didn't move. She crouched beside him, looking over at him, then out at the ocean as well for a moment. There was silence as she waited for him to say something.

"It's so…beautiful," he spoke at last, "I've never been so close to the ocean before."

"It's full of mysteries," she agreed. She paused, "Have you…been here this whole time?"

It was then he looked over at her expression confused, "What whole time?"

"It's late," she said. Didn't he realize that? "Your brothers have been looking for you."

He blinked, frowned a little, and returned his gaze to the ocean. He was silent again for a moment; she waited, able to tell that he was troubled by something.

"I can't hear her anymore," Kadaj said, "I think…she's really gone now…"

Of course; Jenova. He was still mourning her.

"Maybe…" she paused, wondering if it was such a wise thing to say, but continued anyway, "Maybe its better this way."

"Better this way?" he repeated, his voice rising to an almost crazed pitch, "She's gone! How can it be _better_ this way?"

She laid a hand on his arm. She didn't want to upset him, but she continued nonetheless, "She was only controlling you," she said gently. She wasn't sure even know how she'd come up with that, it just seemed to fit. Everything she'd learned, seen, heard.

He pulled away from her, sending her a glare that wasn't so much threatening as it was sad, "I willingly did whatever Mother wanted. I was never…controlled," he said, "Just like Sephiroth."

"What?" Sophronica said with a frown.

"He heard her too. I was going to prove to her that I'm better then…_him_," Kadaj said bitterly, "But I failed."

"Well, well; what do we have here?"

The voice came from behind them, and she tensed as she stood, turned. Her eyes must have flashed in the dark as she did so, because the man who had spoken looked surprised for a second. A gang. About seven tough, grimy looking guys, wearing black leather and chains. Most of them held some form of a weapon. She eyed them warily as Kadaj stood beside her.

"A couple of freaks," the guy sneered at them.

She growled in response.

"A couple of freakin' _animals_," one of the other guys who heard her commented.

"What are you doin' in our city, freaks?" the first guy said.

"Your city? I'm afraid this isn't _your_ city anymore," Kadaj said to them calmly, but his calm tone held a promise of danger.

"And who does it belong to runt, you?" the guy snorted.

"I wouldn't be running my mouth like that if I were you," Sophronica said, her anger starting to rise.

"And what are you going to do about it, bitch?" the guy said, obviously not thinking she was a threat.

"Now? Kill you," she said simply, her tone twisted, slightly amused somehow. Her anger was close to boiling now, and he was her target.

In the blink of an eye, she had moved forward to stand in front of him, one hand wrapped around his neck, the other drawn back into a fist. She punched him in the face. Hit him again and his nose cracked, issuing forth blood. He made a gurgling sound of surprise as he fell backwards. She fell with him, pinning him down with her knees and continuing to punch him. For a moment, Kadaj just stood there, watchin her, slightly surprised, mostly amused by her sudden brutality. Until one of the other guys finally got the idea to help their fallen leader, and came at Sophronica with a metal pipe raised in one hand. Then Kadaj drew Souba, and continuing through with the motion, severed the man's arm at the elbow.

As screaming filled her ears, Sophronica struck the gang leader in the throat with one hand, a chopping motion that had enough force behind it to crush his windpipe and kill him. She got to her feet and swung around. She pulled the metal pipe from the man's severed hand and stabbed it through his right eye. The end punched out through the back of his skull with a wet crunch, effectively killing him and shutting him up.

If the remaining five gang members were upset or frightened over the swift deaths of the first two, they didn't show it. Instead, they rushed forward. She ducked a blow from a mohawked man and grabbed the arm with which he held the long knife. He tried to punch her with his other hand, but she dodged and kicked him in the knee. There was a pop and he screamed. She bent his arm back towards him and plunged the blade through his neck. His screams died down to gurgles as his eyes widened. She pushed him sideways and he fell with a splash into the ocean.

She didn't see the man standing behind her until he'd dealt a crushing punch to the back of her head with the brass knuckles he wore. She fell, black spots dancing before her eyes and he roughly grabbed her by the shoulder, flipping her onto her back. As he sat across her and drew back his fist again, the twin blades of Kadaj's Souba suddenly punched through his chest, spraying her with drops of blood. Kadaj pulled back his sword and kicked the corpse over the edge of the dock. He offered her a hand up, and without a moment's hesitation she accepted. He pulled her to her feet and she followed through with the momentum to land a round house kick to the chest of one of the three remaining thugs.

Kadaj didn't need any help; he was cutting through the other two like a bloody tornado. The guy she'd kicked recovered fast, grabbed her arm and pulled her around into a choke hold, his own arm across her throat. She bowed her head and bit down hard on his bare arm. He cried out and she rammed an elbow back into his face. He released her, stumbling back, and she dealt him a kick to the head that was strong enough to snap his neck. He tumbled back to join the other two in the ocean with a splash. She turned to see the other two falling under Kadaj's blade. Silence ruled through the docks once more. He turned as well, blood dripping from his sword, as he remembered that she'd been hurt.

"Are you alright?" he asked her.

She reached a hand to the back of her head, winced as it was tender, but nodded anyway, "Yeah, fine." She said.

She gazed around at the mess and shook her head a little. Then she proceeded to kick the gang leader's corpse into the ocean as well, along with the severed arm, of which she made a face at.

"We should get out of here," Sophronica said, "Before some one comes along."

Kadaj nodded, sheathing his sword.

But they had already been seen. Some one had seen the whole thing, and as they watched the two leave the docks, a dark grin crossed their face, alighting their cat's eyes with a dangerous glow. Their silver hair flashed briefly in the moonlight as they walked down the alley, away from the docks. Their footsteps were so silent that they weren't heard over the lapping waves of the ocean.


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Thank you! I had a lot of fun writing this chapter laughs to self. I'm starting to regret the way I have this planned to end…and the way the sequel goes….sadness. I'm a fan of sadness for some reason, but I also love happy endings, so, lol, yeah…

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**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Thirteen**

Kadaj had called Yazoo and Loz, so by the time he and Sophronica returned 'home', the other two were already there.

"What happened?" Yazoo asked when he saw the blood on the both of them.

"A gang-" Sophronica started.

"-Nothing we couldn't handle," Kadaj continued over her.

"In other words; bloods not ours," she clarified, looking over at him.

"A gang?" Loz repeated, sounding unsure.

"Yeah. Decided they wanted to give us a warm welcome," she said dryly.

"You're both alright?" Yazoo asked, still sounding worried.

"Yes," Sophronica and Kadaj replied in unison.

She sighed, running a hand through her hair, and slipped past them to wash the blood off of her face. She gazed into the mirror for a long time when she saw done, seeing but not really seeing her reflection. She lowered her head and left the bathroom, walking down the hall to the room that she and Yazoo were sharing. She leaned her swords against the wall, set her whip down beside them, and then took off her boots and gloves, keeping the feather tucked safely inside.

-----------------------

Late that night, Yazoo was awake. He lay on his back gazing up through the darkness at the ceiling. Sophronica was asleep beside him, her head on his shoulder. The thoughts that had risen to his mind disturbed him; he wondered if she really did love him. She'd said she did, but it was only that one time. And nothing had happened, really, since that night. Did she love him the way he loved her? Or…. He'd seen the way she looked at Kadaj sometimes, but maybe it was only her concern for him because of how badly he was reacting to losing Mother. Or maybe not. It hurt to think that she could possibly love his brother more. He'd never loved anyone besides his brothers before. Before her. His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a terrible wailing sound. Beside him, Sophronica jumped, raising her head.

"What the hell is that?" she muttered, more asleep than awake.

He didn't know, so he didn't answer her. He sat up, tilting his head to the side with a frown.

Grumbling, she threw back the sheets and stood. She was dressed of course, and pushed her hair back from her face as she yanked open the door, nearly colliding with Kadaj.

"The hellish noise," he muttered, eyes half closed, "Is coming from Loz's room."

She gave a growl as she stalked down the hall.

Yazoo, the most awake of the three, since he hadn't been sleeping in the first place, quickly followed after them, silent as a ghost.

Sophronica was already pounding a fist on the door to Loz's room.

"Loz! Whatever the fuck that is, SHUT IT UP!" Kadaj shouted.

There was no response, except that the terrible sound continued.

Yazoo pushed past them and opened the door.

Loz sat on the bed, holding some kind of small furry object. He looked up as the door opened, seeming fearful.

"Loz," Yazoo started calmly.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean, I didn't know-"

"Loz!"

Loz winced, shutting up.

"What is…that thing?" Yazoo asked, meaning the furry object from which the wailing sound was issuing forth. Since he was standing right in the doorway, both Sophronica and Kadaj were trying to get past him, but he wasn't letting them.

"I don't care what it is; if it doesn't shut up I'm going to kill it!" Kadaj threatened from behind Yazoo.

Loz gave him a horrified look, "You wouldn't!"

"I would. Yazoo, I demand that you get out of the way!" Kadaj said.

"Loz?" Yazoo said, still awaiting an answer as he ignored his younger brother.

"It's-it's a puppy," Loz said.

"What? That sound's coming from a fucking dog?" Sophronica muttered. She'd given up trying to get past Yazoo and was leaning against the wall.

"It was all alone on the street!" Loz said, sounding rather pitiful.

Kadaj suddenly kicked Yazoo in the back of the knee and slipped past him. Loz's eyes widened as his brother dived at him. Holding the puppy to his chest to protect it, he darted out of the way. Kadaj hit the floor instead, but managed to grab Loz's ankle and tripped him. Loz fell, managing to protect the puppy from getting squished. In a second, Kadaj was on him, clawing at him like a madman in an attempt to get the now screaming puppy. The two were yelling at each other, and pretty soon, Yazoo was shouting at them as well as he tried to pull his brothers away from each other.

Sophronica stood in the doorway, leaning against the frame with her arms crossed as she watched them, one eyebrow raised. As amusing as it was, it was probably something like three o'clock in the morning and she was tired.

"Have you all gone FUCKING INSANE?" she had to shout at the top of her lungs to be heard.

They all stopped fighting, gazing up at her with wide eyes. Even the puppy had shut up.

"You're acting like a bunch of five year olds!" she said, "It's just a damn dog, not a demon out of hell!"

With that, she strode forward, grabbed Yazoo by the arm, and with some difficulty managed to pull him to his feet.

"You two can kill each other now; I don't care, so long as you're quiet," she continued, "Now goodnight."

She left the room then, dragging Yazoo with her.

Loz and Kadaj blinked at each other, surprised. Then the puppy started whimpering, and Kadaj growled.

----------------------------

In the morning, as Sophronica blinked up at the ceiling, the first thoughts on her mind were actually not the previous night with the puppy incident, they were actually about The feather, which was still inside her glove. Sitting up, she reached for it on the bedside table and pulled it out. It seemed even longer then she remembered, and silken black. Like an angel's feather, if angels had black wings. She sat there twirling it in her hands for a moment, then her gaze went to Draco. Standing, she walked across the room to her sword and lifted it. Then she tied the feather to the trinket at the base of the blade.

"What's that?" Yazoo asked her, sitting up.

She looked over at him, not answering right away. "It's…nothing," she said at last.

She wasn't really so sure she knew herself. She leaned Draco against the wall and walked back over to the bed, sitting down beside him. He pulled her closer to him, and the expression in his eyes puzzled her, like something was troubling him. She raised a hand to his face, and they kissed. It was soft at first, but she tilted her head to the side, her hand sliding to the back of his neck, and deepened the kiss. Of course, it had to be just at this moment that the door opened.

"Hey, Yaz-" Kadaj started.

There was a slam as the door closed again. "I did _not_ need to see that!" he shouted at them through the wood, instead of sounding surprised he sounded angry.

"Knock next time!" she called after she'd pulled away.

He grumbled something unintelligible and then it sounded like he kicked the wall.

She frowned a little as she turned back to Yazoo. "Sounds like some one's in a bad mood," she commented, kissing him once more before turning to grab her gloves.

"Loz's puppy?" he suggested, standing and reaching for his coat.

"Maybe," Sophronica said, "I wonder how that went over."

In the kitchen area, Loz and Kadaj were bickering-again.

"The puppy's hungry," Loz said.

"I don't _care_," Kadaj said, bowing his head.

"But that's why it keeps crying," Loz said, somewhat pleadingly, "And there's no food here at all."

"Well, we can't exactly go out and buy some, can we?" Kadaj snapped, lifting his head again to glare at his brother.

"I could get us food," Yazoo spoke up.

They all turned their attention to him.

"Really?" Kadaj said, eyes suddenly bright instead of angry.

Yazoo nodded mutely.

"Well go then," Kadaj said.

Yazoo turned, his hand brushing Sophronica's as he left.

She turned back to the other two, who were watching her.

"What?" she said, taking a seat at the kitchen table.

Loz shook his head, remaining silent.

Kadaj gazed at her for a minute more, and then looked away.

There were a few moments of silence during which they all avoided the others' gazes.

"Doesn't any one have normal conversations around here?" Sophronica said at last, sounding exasperated.

Immediately they both looked at her.

"What would you suggest we talk about then?" Kadaj said.

"I don't know," she said, "Why are you in such a bad mood?"

He lowered his gaze to the table top, muttering to himself.

She didn't catch a word of it-except Yazoo's name. "What about Yazoo?" she asked, interrupting him.

He blinked and looked back up at her. He saw that Loz was also watching him curiously now, and scowled. "Nothing," he sighed, lowering his gaze again.

"Are you mad at him?"

"…"

"Is he mad at you?"

"…"

Was he even paying attention to her anymore?

"Are you two having a lovers quarrel?"

"Hey!" he looked up, indignant, "I am _not-_"

"Chill. I got your attention again, didn't I?" she said, resisting the urge to laugh at his expression.

"Nothing's wrong between me and Yazoo," Kadaj said through gritted teeth, resisting the urge to hurt her.

"You're sure?" she persisted.

"He's just-" Loz started.

Kadaj smacked him upside the head.

"What was that for?" Loz whimpered.

"Just shut up," Kadaj told him.

She looked at the two of them, narrowing her eyes. Something was up.


	14. Chapter 14

**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Fourteen**

The three of them looked up as Yazoo returned. Loz and Kadaj watched him approach like a couple of hungry baby birds, and Sophronica had to resist teasing them for fear of starting another explosive argument. She'd had enough of those. She was just glad to see him, whether he had food or not. And he did. Eyeing his brothers warily, Yazoo set the large bag onto the table, pulling his hands back as Loz and Kadaj snatched at the bag.

"That didn't take long," Kadaj commented.

"Yeah, how'd you get so much food so fast?" Loz asked.

"It wasn't too hard," Yazoo said, sitting down between Sophronica and Kadaj.

"Then how'd you do it?" Loz questioned, ever persistent.

Yazoo shook his head, not answering him.

Sophronica fished an apple out of the bag. "What are you going to do about the dog?" she asked Loz, changing the subject.

Yazoo looked over at her gratefully.

"I still say we should kill it," Kadaj muttered.

Loz shot him a sad look, which he ignored.

"But Sephy has no where else to go!" Loz said.

Sophronica nearly choked on her apple. "Sephy?" she repeated when she could breathe, "…I ain't even going to ask." She shook her head. "It's all cute and fuzzy now, but what about when it gets bigger?"

"I didn't think about that," Loz said.

"Of course you didn't," Kadaj said, "This…dog…is going to grow into even more of a nightmare."

"Sephy's not a nightmare!" Loz insisted.

"Screaming in the middle of the night isn't a nightmare?"

"He was hungry!"

The two started bickering again, and she watched them as she finished her apple. Rolling her eyes, she pushed back her chair and stood. They didn't even notice. After retrieving her weapon, she paused on the stairs, looking back at them. Just after she turned away, Yazoo shifted in his chair to watch her. He knew she was going out, and he knew why.

Closing the door behind her, she could still hear their voices as they argued. Sighing, she started down the long stairwell. Not for the first time, the thought of going solo again crossed her mind, but she knew she couldn't. They'd find her, and then they'd be mad. Besides that, as crazy as they were, they were her 'family' now. Her brothers and her love. No, she couldn't leave them; they needed her as much as she needed them.

She pushed open the door at the bottom of the stairwell, crossed the first floor, and ducked under the two-by-four. Pausing out in the alley, she looked up and down it, deciding which direction to go. Today she wasn't just wandering aimlessly, she had a mission; she was going to try and find the silver haired stranger from yesterday. Walking out of the alley, she took the same streets as she did twice yesterday, hoping to be lucky. What she didn't know was that luck didn't matter. She could walk every street in the city and not find them until they wanted her to. They decided to save her the trouble of doing that though.

The streets were getting more crowded as she reached a more popular section of the city. While navigating through the crowd, some one slammed their shoulder into hers, spinning her around.

"Hey!" She exclaimed angrily, but the flash of silver froze the next angry remarks in her throat.

It was…them-him, her? They gave her a sly smirk over their shoulder, medium length silver hair half hiding their face

"Hey!" she repeated, starting through the crowd, pushing people out of her way.

The Stranger suddenly broke into a run, and she gave chase. They cut across the street and she followed, leaping over a parked car to keep up. Damn, they were fast! A black and silver blur shot through the crowds, and another black and silver blur was right behind it. As she ran, she looked around for some way to get ahead or catch up. Nothing. The Stranger darted into an alley, pulled down the fire escape ladder, and scaled it as swiftly as a monkey. They were already on the second landing when she was only half way up the ladder.

She didn't speak, saved all of her breath for running. She rounded the steps up the first landing. Second. She made it to the rooftop a bare ten seconds after the Stranger, but they were already half way across it, dodging around massive pipes and air conditioning units. Not even having a chance to pause, she continued chasing. The Stranger leaped over the edge, long black trench coat flaring out behind them like wings, the chains looped across the bottom rattling. They landed on the next rooftop in an easy crouch, throwing a look back at her over their shoulder, then they took off again.

She leaped too, using the concrete rail to vault into the air. She hit the other rooftop, slipped a little in the gravel, but regained her balance and continued running. She lost sight of them for a moment, ducked around a particularly large air conditioning unit, and saw them again, already leaping across the next gap. With a growl, she put on a burst of speed, panting a little. As she reached the gap that was an alley between the buildings, she risked a glance down, and wished that she hadn't; she'd forgotten how high up they were. It wasn't that she minded heights-she obviously didn't. It was just different some how.

She hit the next rooftop, keeping her balance this time, and continued the chase. She stopped short when she saw the Stranger, standing on the concrete railing that ran around the rooftop. She took this moment to study them; combat boots, leather pants, leather trench coat with the chains on it-all black. Their coat was open in front, revealing that they also wore a type of chain mail shirt. Their hair was down to their shoulders, hiding almost all of their face but their near literally glowing Mako eyes.

"I just want to talk to you," she said, a bit out of breath.

They didn't say anything, but a twisted smile crossed their face. They spread their arms out, tilted their head up, and leaned back. Her eyes widened as she watched them just…fall willingly over the edge. As they vanished, she rushed over. By the time she peered down into the alley below, they were gone. Sitting down to catch her breath, she wondered what the hell was going on. Who ever this was, was definitely like herself and the others-no one human could have survived a fall off this building, or out run her like that either. Another of Shin-Ra's pet science experiments. But what was it-their-purpose?


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: **Ah, but of course in due time. –Attempts to sound mysterious- In due time. Lol. For now, it's time to screw with the brothers' minds.

-----------------------------

**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Fifteen**

Sophronica had returned down to the streets, searching the area in hopes that the Stranger-as she'd so come to thinking of them-hadn't completely vanished. But, as of now, that seemed to be the case. Sighing, she leaned against the wall of an alley and ran her hands through her hair. With a growl of frustration, she whirled around and punched the wall. Mostly, all she did was hurt herself. She hated being out of the loop, and that's how she felt now. Shaking her hand, she waited until the pain faded.

"Is…something wrong?"

She looked up, a little surprised, as she hadn't heard him approach.

"Just something that's not important," she lied, "How's it going with Loz and the dog?"

Kadaj didn't answer right away as he walked towards her. "He wants to keep the damn thing, of course," he said.

"Of course," she echoed, "It is kind of cute, when it's not making a racket."

"Can we _not_ talk about the dog? I've had enough of it," he said.

"I understand," she said, not wanting to upset him again.

"Actually…I've been looking for you," he said, leaning one gloved hand on the wall beside her head. "I want to talk to you about something."

She raised an eyebrow, "Sure, what is it?" she said, keeping her tone even.

"I…think I love you," he said.

She blinked in surprise, not knowing what to say, and waited for him to continue.

"I can't stop thinking about you," he said, placing his other hand on the wall on the other side of her head. "I've never loved anyone before," he continued, leaning closer to her.

"But Yazoo-" she started.

"Fuck Yazoo," he said bitterly.

"Kadaj!" she managed.

"I'm sorry," he said, suddenly sounding sad, as he averted his gaze.

Before she could react, he kissed her. She was so surprised at first that she couldn't move, than she raised her hands and pushed him away. She started to speak a protest, but he stopped her.

"Shh," he said, holding a finger to her lips.

He moved his hand down her neck, at the same time leaning in for another kiss. She shoved him, hard, and he fell back. As he looked up at her, she expected him to be angry. What she didn't expect was his slightly crazy sounding laugh.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" she demanded, surprised and angered by the way he was acting.

"Come on Sophronica, I was only having a little fun," he said, even his tone of voice sounding slightly crazy.

"Fun?" she repeated, "Well, I don't think its fun." She turned and started down the alley.

"Wait, Soph-" he started, his tone suddenly different.

"Leave me the fuck alone," she threw back over her shoulder, not stopping.

She left the alley, went down the street, and cut down another alley. Her anger had almost boiled over back there, but she knew she couldn't hurt him-as much as she wanted to. Energy crackled around her fingertips, and she shook it off. Maybe it was the stress, the let down of failing Mother, still riding on them all, making him act so odd. She ducked back under the two-by-four, wondering why she'd come back here, since she'd really just left. She needed to cool down though, before her anger found a target and was unleashed. Years ago, it would've been where she didn't care, would have just let her anger out. Shin-Ra hadn't liked that too much.

Yanking open the door to the loft, she decided to head up to the rooftop, but the figure sitting at the kitchen table stopped her for a second. She narrowed her eyes.

"How did you…? Never mind, just leave me alone," she said, moving towards the door to the roof.

"Sophronica?" Kadaj said with a frown.

"Just shut up," she said to him.

"What did I do?" he sounded confused, hurt.

She stopped, turning to him for a moment. "As if you don't know," she snapped.

"I don't know!"

She didn't say anything more to him, just turned again and continued up to the roof.

"What's _her_ problem?" he said to himself.

Up on the rooftop, Sophronica just stood there for a moment, her eyes closed, as the wind played with her hair and caressed her skin. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Unsheathing Draco, she sat down cross legged, holding the sword in her lap. Watching the black feather flutter in the breeze, it reminded her some how of her brother. Thinking of him made her realize now more then ever how much she missed him. She'd come so close to getting him back, and Cloud had screwed it up. She shook her head.

----------------------------

Downstairs, in the loft, Loz was sitting in his room with the puppy-Sephy-trying to get it to eat something so it wouldn't start crying again and bother Kadaj. Sephy sniffed the piece of bread in his hand and turned its head away, refusing it.

"Come on, you have to eat something," Loz pleaded.

Sephy barked at him.

"Picky eater?" Yazoo guessed from the doorway.

Loz looked up, "Yes," he said.

"Let me help," Yazoo said, closing the door behind him and walking towards his brother.

Loz watched him, unsure for some reason. Something seemed off about him, but he couldn't place it at first. Then he realized that it was the look in his eyes. He'd seen that look before, in fights, but never directed at him before. A taunting, demented look that actually scared him.

----------------------------

Back up on the rooftop, Sophronica continued to sit there, her eyes closed, her sword resting on her knees. The air around her seemed to almost ripple with the depth of her thoughts and the force of her concentration. Her anger had drained away, and now all she could hear was _his_ voice, his laugh, echoing in her mind. His smile, his eyes, before her own. She could feel her sword blade vibrating in her hands, and with a frown opened her eyes. It stopped the instant she did, but the writing engraved on it was glowing a little. That too stopped after a second. Puzzled, she ran her hand over the flat of the blade. That was odd. In all the years she'd had Draco, it had never reacted to anything…except that one time. She'd been in a Shin-Ra laboratory. It had done the same thing as now. But what did it mean? Shaking her head, she stood, sheathing her sword again. Hearing footsteps behind her, she turned.

Yazoo wasted no time in getting to the point of why he was up there. "You're mad at Kadaj." It wasn't a question.

"It's nothing serious," she said, "I'm just frustrated."

"Please don't lie," he said, "You can tell me. What is it?"

She gazed at him for a moment. She could read from his tone of voice that something was bothering him-and she didn't think it was Kadaj. "It's not his fault. It's mine. I'm-everything that's happened…" she said, shaking her head. What was she saying? Of course it was his fault!

"Maybe. But he has a knack for pissing people off," Yazoo said.

She shook her head again, turning away. "It's…"

"Is it me?"

"What?" she said with a frown, turning again to face him.

"I didn't mean it like that," he said, "I was just thinking…if you really love me." He bowed his head a little, but didn't look away.

"What would make you think that I don't?" she asked, taking a step towards him.

"Sometimes you don't act like you do. You don't act like you care about me at all. Or anyone," he said.

She blinked. When she really thought about it, she knew that he was right. Sometimes she got caught up in her own thoughts and feelings, her own world, and forgot about everyone else.

"I'm sorry," she said, walking to him, "Of course I love you. I always have."

"Always?" he repeated, surprised.

Had she actually said that? "I think so. Even before the 'awakening'." She said.

"How could you love some one who tried to kill you?" Yazoo said, a little skeptical.

"Love isn't logical," she said, raising a hand to his face, "And I'm obviously not holding that against you," she added, meaning back when they were enemies. "In fact, that was one of the reasons; first guy to kick my ass."

"Still could," he said lowly, bending his head to kiss her.

"I doubt it," she said slyly.

Stepping back from her, he pulled Velvet Nightmare and set it aside. And if the way he tilted his head to the side and looked at her wasn't invitation enough to find out, she didn't know what was. She took a step back as well, drawing both of her swords and tossing them to the side. She unclipped her whip and set it on top of the blades. She placed one foot more behind her for better balance, and beckoned to him. He circled around her, movements slow and precise. She dropped out of her defensive position to turn with him, watching and waiting. Then, in the time it took her to blink, he was moving, launching a round house kick aimed at her head. She dropped down to avoid it, feet sliding out into a split, fingertips touching the rooftop. She leaned forward on her hands and flipped into the air. Before she even landed, she was driving forward a swift uppercut.

He deflected the blow with the palm of his hand and lashed a kick at her feet. She fell, landing sideways on her hands, and swept a leg across the ground in a move to knock his feet out from under him. He leaped straight up and avoided it. She vaulted to her feet and aimed a snap kick at his chest. He caught her foot just before she hit him and swung her. She followed the momentum, tumbling midair and landing in a catlike crouch on top of one of the larger air conditioning units. She rose, turning to face him, but he no longer stood where he had been. She whirled around as he leapt up in front of her, delivering a punch to her stomach. It wasn't a powerful blow though, and her stumbled back steps were mostly just exaggeration to bring her closer to the edge of the unit.

Kicking off, she performed a back flip, landing on her feet even as he leaped after her. She'd barely regained her balance when he launched another round house kick. She ducked, like before, and he was ready with a fist to her side. Caught by surprise, she took a step back, gasping in a breath. He let her recover, and when she did she rushed at him with a punch. He darted to the side, just as she'd expected, and as she turned she nailed him in the back with a kick. He retaliated with a sideways kick and she leaped back, landing on the concrete rail that ran the edge of the building. Balanced there, she spun into another kick, which he dodged. When she came back down, she slipped. As she started to fall backwards, he grabbed her by the arm and pulled her towards him.

Firmly back on her own two feet again, she nodded her head and he understood. They circled each other again for a few moments, a stand off between two predators. Then she struck out with a punch. He pulled his head to the side, one hand catching her wrist, the other gripping her upper arm. He flipped her over his head and she twisted midair, landing easily on her feet behind him. She lashed out with a kick to the back of his knee, and he fell. She lifted a hand to his shoulder, and he grabbed her wrist, suddenly rising to his feet and twisting her arm around behind her back. Standing behind her, he raised an arm across her neck. She grabbed his arm with her free hand and pulled, but he was as strong as her if not stronger, and she had no luck.

So she did the unexpected; she hooked her foot behind his ankle, pulled him off balance, and leaned back against him. As they started to fall, he some how twisted around and reversed their positions, so that when they hit the ground, he was on top of her. She raised her hands to push him sideways, but he caught her wrists and pinned them above her head. She struggled for a moment, but it was over.

"I told you," Yazoo said.

"I let you win," she said, even though they both knew it was a lie.

"Of course you did," he said, his voice a purr as he kissed the side of her neck.

Uttering a soft sigh, she suddenly remembered something. "Yazoo, that night, what were you singing?" Sophronica asked.

He gazed at her with surprise in his eyes, than shook his head. Releasing her, he slid over and sat up. "It's nothing," he mumbled, "Just something I made up."

"I liked it. Could I hear the rest of it?" she said, sitting up as well.

He shook his head again, "It's nothing," he repeated.

She gave him a sad look. "Come on, you'll sleep with me but you won't sing for me?" she prodded.

He lifted his head a little to gaze at her. At last, he sighed. "If I must," he relented.

"It won't kill you," she said slightly teasingly.

He ignored her, closed his eyes. "_Don't let the world bring you down_," he began softly, "_Forget the fear of failing, Mind not the pain of losing, And remember I'll be there to break your fall. I'll hear your prayer through the cries of the dieing, I'll find your hand through the swarms of the living, And take you with me to safety_."

She listened in silence to his hauntingly velvet voice, the words cascading over her like waves in the ocean, wrapping around her like a blanket to send shivers running up and down her spine. For a moment when he was done, she continued to sit there in silence, gazing at him.

"That's beautiful," she told him, "How did you-?"

"When Kadaj's nightmares were worse than they are now," he replied, "I thought of this to soothe him. My voice has an effect on him, though he always denies it." He paused for a minute, "That is why when he says he hates my singing; I know he's just teasing."

"You're his older brother, like his protector, of course you have an effect on him," she said softly.

He smiled a little; yes, she was right. He would protect Kadaj from anything that tried to hurt him. He was his family, as was Loz. And so was she.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: **wow, such kind reviews, now I'm really happy. Yeah, Yazoo singing just seems to fit to me, lol. To IceQueenKay: - bows- thank you very much, and here I thought I was messing up their characters somehow (than again I am a bit too critical of myself).

-----------------------------------------

**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Sixteen**

Kadaj was down at the docks, again, just sitting there enjoying the peace as he threw small stones into the water. Well, he had been before Loz had joined him. And of course he'd brought the dog, so now the damn thing was running all over the place, generally being annoying. Kadaj was contemplating ways of accidentally-on purpose knocking it into the ocean when Loz interrupted his thoughts.

"Kadaj…I've noticed that Yazoo's been acting…kind of strange."

He threw another small stone into the water before saying anything. "Yazoo's in _love_, brother. Love twists your mind."

Loz shook his head, "I don't think that's it," he said.

"I think so," Kadaj said, "Ever since he _saw_ her he has been acting foolish."

"It's not that. He's been acting even…stranger," Loz insisted.

At last Kadaj looked over at him. "Strange how?" he asked.

----------------------

Sophronica walked down one of the streets in the city, her attention focused intently on her surroundings. She'd left the Loft earlier with the Stranger still on her mind. Now, she was trying to figure out if Shin-Ra had any influence on this city. She'd asked a few citizens, but they'd just looked at her like she was crazy and said no. She didn't believe them. Hence the reason she was still searching. She cut down an alley to pass over to the next street, looking up at the sky for a moment. It would be starting to get dark soon. For now, it was still light, and the breeze that whipped down the alley was pleasantly cool. She was about midway through when three guys entered the alley ahead of her. She slowed down a little as they stopped, spread out, blocked the way. Narrowing her eyes, she half turned to look behind her and saw that two guys stood near the other end.

"You're the bitch who killed Troy and the others," she tallest of the three guys said. It was a statement.

She sighed, "Have you no manners at all?" she said, annoyed by them, but certainly not scared. There were only five of them, and they were only human, "So, what are you here for, revenge?" She had figured they were members of the gang from last night.

"Something like that, yeah," the guy said.

"That isn't a wise idea," she told him, "The cops are going to start noticing the dead bodies."

He growled a little, "You think you can take us all?"

"Didn't have any trouble last night, did I?" she returned, drawing Draco.

"I don't think you can take us all without your freaky little friend," the guy said boldly.

It was her turn to growl a little. "Don't insult my brother," she said.

Then in a flash she was moving forward. The punk that tried to stop her with a raised knife fell beneath her blade as she dealt a fatal slashing blow across his chest. As he fell, the other punk moved forward to protect the guy who'd spoken to her. He swung a pipe at her head, but she ducked, driving Draco up through his stomach and into the other's chest. She gave the blade a firm upward yank, ripping through flesh and bones, to ensure the death of both punks. Then she freed her sword and moved to the side before either corpse could fall on her. She whirled around as the remaining two advanced on her. She blocked a wild punch and delivered a round house kick to the head of her attacker that snapped his neck. He tumbled back, landing on his buddy and dragging him down to the ground. The guy yelped and struggled to push the body off of him as she stood above them. She raised her sword.

"Oh shit!" he said, his eyes widening.

She plunged her sword down through both bodies and he stopped struggling. This was not the kind of fight she enjoyed, but there'd been no choice. She pulled her blade free, blood dripping down the tip. The sudden sound of clapping caused her to flinch and gaze about.

"Impressive as always."

It was an unfamiliar voice, as calming as it was chilling. Smooth and seductive but also innocent and slightly sad. Not to mention arrogant.

"Who's there?" she called, turning in a circle as she tried to figure out where the voice had come from.

There was a laugh. "You haven't figured it out yet?"

Turning again, something drew her gaze up and she tilted her head back. Perched on the railing of the lowest landing of the fire escape, gripping the metal bar between their feet and gazing down at her like a demented bird of prey or a gargoyle, was the Stranger. Something about this sent a shiver down her spine.

"Now isn't the time to talk, but I'll be seeing you," they-a he, from the voice-said abruptly, abandoning his perch and starting up the fire escape to the roof.

"Wait!" she called, "Who are you?"

There was no response.

"At least tell me your name," she said.

At this, he paused, leaning over the railing on the third landing to gaze down at her once more. "They call me…Chimera," he said, "And I already know your name, beautiful Sophronica." Then he turned, so fast that the chains on his coat rattled as he vanished up the fire escape.

"Chimera?" she pondered aloud to herself. Why did that sound so familiar?

Then in her mind's eye, she saw that day she'd been at that supposedly 'abandoned' Shin-Ra laboratory. In one of the log files, the name Chimera had been mentioned numerous times. And there'd been a holding cell, with Chimera marked on the door, that when she'd walked by, her sword had vibrated in her hands. At the time, she'd though it'd been about experimentations on some animal, or other beast, but not, the experiments had been done on-humans. Her eyes widened with the realization that Chimera had been one of Shin-Ra's early experiments, maybe almost as early as herself and Sephiroth. She had to tell the others; they had to know about Chimera, whether he was a threat to them or not. She sheathed Draco and swiftly left the alley, heading back towards the loft.

-------------------

"Kadaj?" she called upon entering the Loft, coming up the last flight of stairs.

There was no response and she remembered that he'd gone down to the docks.

"Loz?" she started down the hall, pausing in front of the open door to his room.

It was empty.

"Yazoo?" she opened the door to their room. Empty.

She left the hall and went into the main room of the Loft. She turned in a circle for a moment before sighing and kicking at one of the kitchen chairs. She moved over towards one of the boarded up windows, raised a hand to her face, fingers sweeping over her head piece before falling back to her side. Just when she was thinking the whole place was empty she heard a whisper of footsteps behind her. As she started to turn, some one kicked her. Hard. She uttered a sound of surprise as she was knocked backward, crashing through the window, hearing the wood splinter.

She was falling, wind rushing past her along with the stories of the building. She heard people screaming-or maybe was it her? She caught a glimpse of the ground rushing up at her before she hit the sidewalk. The impact sent spikes of pain lancing down her neck, across her back, out to her arms and legs as if she'd fallen on a bed of nails. Rattled her teeth, caused her to bite her tongue, filling her mouth with a coppery tang. She swore she heard bones snap and darkness fringed her vision, quickly swallowing her. She thought she passed out, but when she was aware again, her eyes were wide open and she was gazing up at the evening sky.

Suddenly feeling like she was unable to breathe, she gasped in a breath and instantly grimaced as pain ripped through her chest. There was a throbbing at the back of her head that threatened black butterflies across her vision again. Pain was still shooting out to all of her limbs and her skin felt prickly, slightly numb. She was afraid to move, if she even could move, but she had to. She lifted her fingers, was aware of the movement and knew that was a good sign. She tried to push herself up on her elbows but failed. Her swords felt like they were digging into her back and she winced.

"Sophronica?"

She'd never been so glad to hear his voice before, or see his face as he knelt beside her.

"What happened? Sophronica?"

"Yazoo…it was…Chimera," she started, trying again to sit up.

"Don't move," he said, pushing her gently back down, "Who's Chimera?"

"One of…Shin-Ra's experiments," she said, gazing up into his troubled eyes, "Don't worry…about me. You have to…warn Kadaj and Loz."

Yazoo shook his head, silver hair falling across his eyes, "I'm afraid I can't do that Sophronica," he said softly.

"What?" she said with a frown, coughing a little and wincing.

"I can't tell them. They can't know," he said, standing and drawing Velvet Nightmare.

She gazed up at him, her eyes wide with confusion and the hurt of certain betrayal, as he aimed his weapon at her. "Tenshi?"

His expression had changed, demented, cold, and as he tilted his head to the side, he said, "I told you I'd be seeing you again."

And then he pulled the trigger.

She cried out as the shot tore through her side. It wasn't a fatal wound, but it could eventually kill her nonetheless. It was impossible! Her mind was swimming with confusion, anger, hurt, pain. His words echoed in her ears. Impossible, her mind told her again. She blinked, and it was no longer Yazoo standing over her, but Chimera. Her blood began to pool around her as he crouched beside her, watching her with the kind of morbid curiosity one would watch a dying animal they'd just shot. Chimera…Chimera was a shape shifter?

"Hey, don't pass out on me yet," he said, reaching a hand to her face, his fingers cold, as he saw her eyes starting to dim.

She tried to push his hand away but couldn't.

"I'm going to hunt them down you know," he told her, tilting his head to the side, "Your family. And when I kill them, I'm going to let you watch them die. Your brothers. Your lover."

She wanted to hurt him. Wanted to scream at him. But she couldn't. Her vision was fading. She wanted to wipe that smirk off his face. But she…couldn't…


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: **It shall all be explained in the next couple of chapters-there's only two left after this one. It is quite a shocking twist, isn't it: )

-----------------------

**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Seventeen**

Chimera entered the warehouse carrying Sophronica in his arms. She was unconscious, but even now had already stopped bleeding. She really was amazing. He set her down lightly on the concrete, standing again just as his cell phone rang. He fished it out of a pocket and flipped it open.

"Yes, sir?" "Yes." "Tonight, I understand." "Sir."

Ending the brief conversation, he closed the phone with a snap. Turning, he slipped it back into his pocket. Pausing there for a minute, he closed his eyes, concentrated, and when he opened them again, he was Yazoo.

------------------

Loz was headed back to the Loft after leaving Kadaj at the docks. Sephy had gotten hungry and started annoying them both, so Kadaj had asked-more like commanded-Loz to take the dog away before he changed his mind about not killing it. Kadaj was still half convinced that Yazoo's odd behavior was due to him being in love. Even after Loz had told him of his strange conversation with Yazoo just earlier that day. Loz was sure it was something more than that.

"Loz."

Turning at the sound of his name, he saw Yazoo walking towards him. "Y-Yazoo, I thought you were with Sophronica?" Loz said, a little uneasy.

"I was," Yazoo frowned, "Is something the matter brother?"

"No," Loz said quickly. "…Well…" he hesitated.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Yazoo said.

"Well…It's…you," Loz said.

"Me?" Yazoo seemed genuinely surprised.

"Recently, you've been different. And I've just been a little worried," Loz said, turning away.

Silently, Yazoo drew Velvet Nightmare, "You should be worried," he said before swinging the weapon at the back of Loz's head. It connected solidly with a thunk, and as he fell the dog yelped and scrambled away.

"How foolish you are," Yazoo/Chimera said to Loz's still form.

-----------------------

"I thought you were going back to the loft?" Kadaj said without turning. He could tell it was Loz behind him from his footsteps.

When he got no response he frowned a little. "Loz?" he said.

"I changed my mind," Loz spoke at last.

"Is everything alright?"

"Everything's fine," Loz said.

But there was something odd about the way he said it that sent alarm bells ringing in Kadaj's head. Instinct told him to move, and so he obeyed. He rolled to the side, almost rolling over the edge of the dock, and sprang to his feet with liquid grace. He heard wood splinter as Loz's fist slammed into the dock.

"Loz?" Kadaj said, a definite note of alarm in his voice.

Loz didn't respond. He grabbed his younger and much smaller brother by the neck and threw him. Kadaj tumbled through the air and landed easily in a catlike crouch, one hand reaching back to the hilt of his sword. But he hesitated, didn't draw the blade.

"What's the matter with you brother?" he demanded.

"You'll find out soon enough," Loz replied, walking towards him, "But not now."

"Why not now?" Kadaj asked warily, drawing Souba just in case, and standing.

Loz tilted his head to the side, a movement that wasn't him, "Because. It would ruin the surprise," he said. He swung at him with his Dual Hound.

Kadaj blocked the blow with his sword, "What the fuck are you talking about?"

Loz grabbed the twin blades of his sword and pulled him close only to head-butt him. Kadaj grunted, stumbling back to raise a gloved hand to his forehead. Loz pulled Souba from his grip, tossing it aside where it clattered against the dock, then he wrapped his hand around his neck and lifted him into the air.

"Loz!" he gasped, struggling.

Loz merely tightened his grip.

--------------------------

Yazoo had almost returned to the Loft when a sense that something was wrong crept up his spine, like the feeling that some one was watching him. But when he turned, there was no one there. The feeling persisted though, and he frowned as he quickened his pace. It was a moment after he saw the splintered wood and broken glass on the sidewalk that Sophronica emerged from the alley.

"Yazoo!" she cried, limping over to him, one hand over her side, blood seeping through her fingers. She collapsed in his arms, throwing her other arm around his neck.

"Sophronica! You're bleeding-what happened?" Yazoo said, alarmed and concerned.

She leaned her forehead against his shoulder. "It was…I thought…" she shook her head and he could tell that she was crying.

"Sophronica," he said softly, forcing himself to speak calmly. He slipped a hand under her chin and tilted her face up so he could look her in the eye. "Who did this?"

She didn't answer at first, turning her pained eyes away for a moment. "…Chimera…"

"Chimera?" Yazoo repeated. The name didn't ring any bells, "Where are-?"

"Not here," Sophronica replied, guessing who he meant. "I don't know…" Suddenly she winced, her knees buckling.

He held her up though, noticing for the first time the wound on her side. "You've been shot," he said with a frown.

"I'll live," she whispered, hiding her face against his shoulder, "Just…don't let go." She tightened her arm around his neck, as if she were afraid he'd vanish.

"About…Chimera," he started.

She shook her head, raising her other hand to press a bloody finger to his lips. She lifted her head, slowly lowering her hand, leaving a smear of blood behind. Gazing into his surprised eyes, she kissed him.

"I just _had_ to know what that was like," she whispered when she pulled away.

"Sophronica?" Yazoo said with a puzzled frown.

She pushed him away, suddenly not limping or in pain anymore. "It's all coming to an end," she said, circling around him.

"What is?" he asked, confused. Something told him that this wasn't Sophronica, but that couldn't be.

"Everything," she replied cryptically, "The whole family is coming down."

Suddenly, she lunged forward, throwing a punch. He moved just as suddenly, easily dodging the blow. She came around with another punch which he also dodged, and then a flying round house kick that sent him down. Sighing, she shook her head.

"None of you got it until it was too late."

It wasn't Sophronica standing there anymore now, it was Chimera.

"The three of you were supposed to be so brilliant, remnants of the great general Sephiroth," he continued, starting to rant a bit now, "And his sister-she'd no exception. Are you all so blindingly trusting that you'd let yourselves be defeated by the enemy?" He crouched beside Yazoo. "Well," he tilted his head to the side, "I guess I have the answer to that, now, don't I?"

------------------------------

He paced back and forth in the warehouse, dividing his attention between the steadily sinking sun and the four of them. They were all still unconscious, and he wondered with idle curiosity how long it would take for them to wake up. Abruptly he stopped. Deciding it would be best, maybe it would make things more interesting, he waved a hand. Instantly, shackles of energy wrapped around their wrists and ankles, restraining them. Oh, but not Sophronica, not the beauty. She wouldn't be going anywhere real soon-or fast.

He crouched beside her, moving a few strands of silver hair back from her face. It would be a shame to kill her, really. So strong, so fast, so arrogant. And beautiful. They all were. But he had to. Shin-Ra _promised_ him that if he did this… He stood again, resuming pacing. He continued watching the night fall as he waited. He didn't have to wait, _they_ wouldn't have wanted him to, but he did. He was used to waiting; he could wait just a little longer before this was all over.


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: **Actually, I think Chimera is falling in love with Sophronica, but it sure isn't stopping him from what he 'has' to do. This chapter should explain all your questions. And make for some very upset Yazoo fans –cringes-, well, you'll see how everything turns out. After this chapter, only the Epilogue remains. ((and, ok, the sequel's in progress…and I'm planning a third one.))

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**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Chapter Eighteen**

Sophronica was the first to wake up. At least, she thought she was. She was lying on her back on a cold concrete floor. Faintly, she could hear the sound of the ocean. But louder, over riding that was the sound of footsteps as Chimera paced. He hadn't noticed that she was awake yet, and so she took the opportunity to look around. Turning her head to the side, she saw Kadaj, Yazoo and Loz-all unconscious. She swallowed hard; this wasn't good. Slowly, she sat up, wincing as she did so. Chimera continued pacing, but his gaze flickered in her direction.

"Chimera," she said, more of a growl, and even that alit pin pricks of pain in her chest. She heard her brothers starting to stir.

Chimera stopped when she spoke his name, but didn't turn to her. He waited for her to say something more.

"Why…why are you doing this?" she demanded, placing a hand over her side.

"Wouldn't you like to know," he sneered. "Since you are all about to die anyway, I guess I can tell you." He started pacing again.

Looking over, she saw that Kadaj was glaring at Chimera. Loz was gazing around with a confused expression, and Yazoo was gazing at her with a pained, troubled look in his eyes.

"Shin-Ra…wants you all dead. The four of you, gone. Like erasing a mistake," Chimera said, "And they have bestowed this…task…upon me."

So she was right when she'd though that this was all connected to Shin-Ra. But why?

"Why is Shin-Ra so interested in us? We've gone, left them all alone," Kadaj said.

"Ah, but despite this, that incident with Jenova? Made them more than a little worried," Chimera said to him, "And they don't like being worried. So they're not taking any chances."

"What's to stop them from thinking the same about you?" Yazoo spoke up, tone calm and logical despite how he really felt, "Shin-Ra's evil…you must know that."

"Of course I know that!" Chimera snapped bitterly, "Do you really think I'm that stupid?" he stopped pacing, glaring at Yazoo through the veil of silver hair across his face, "But…" his tone suddenly seemed sad, "…They promised me. They promised me they'd let me go if I did this…"

"What do you mean?" Sophronica asked him with a frown, wincing as pain throbbed through her leg-broken?

Chimera turned his gaze to her. He pulled back the collar of his trench coat and revealed a metal collar around his neck. "See this? It's both a high tech tracking beacon and a stun device. They're the only ones who can take it off," he said, "And as long as I'm wearing it, I'm theirs."

"They won't let you go anyway!" she said. She would've liked to have thought that Shin-Ra wouldn't do such a thing, but she knew they'd done worse.

"Shut up!" Chimera shouted, his voice echoing in the warehouse.

She flinched at his outburst, but didn't let her surprise show in her eyes.

"They promised they would let me go," he said.

"You're wrong to trust them," Kadaj started.

Chimera rounded on him. "No! They promised. They're the only ones who can help me!" he insisted, a crazy, determined light entering his eyes.

He raised his hand, and in the dimness of the warehouse, the air glimmered, rippled. The glimmering pulled together, formed a shape. Then, all at once, it was a sword, the incredibly long, thin, slightly curving blade flashing. Sophronica knew that sword, but it couldn't be the same one; Masamune. Chimera barely glanced at the weapon, as if he knew the sight of it by heart. He continued pacing once more, tapping the blade on his shoulder.

"Which of you first, hmm?" he said. He threw a glance back at Sophronica, "I'm sure you recall our previous conversation." He said to her. He sneered as his gaze drifted over Yazoo.

She wanted to hurt him, to stop him. But by the time she stood, in the condition she was in, and drew her swords, he could kill her. She knew the abilities of Masamune. And wielded by a Shin-Ra created madman? So for now, she sat there, her rage growing.

Chimera stopped in front of Loz. "How about you?" he said, sliding Masamune's tip under his chin, "You've been so quiet, such a good-" the rest of his sneering comment was lost as, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Kadaj break free of his restraints some how.

He drew Souba and rushed Chimera, who merely turned to face him. He ran him through with his twin blades, driving him back from Loz. "Stay away from my brothers," he growled.

Chimer, however, only flinched in surprise at this sudden attack. He looked down at Kadaj's sword, a bare trickle of blood running down his side. "That hurts," he said, almost sounding somewhat puzzled, like he wasn't used to pain.

He pulled the blades free, not even wincing, and after tossing it aside, back handed Kadaj across the face. The blow was strong enough to send him reeling backward. He raised a hand to his face, as his cheek had split.

"Pick up your sword," Chimera ordered him, gazing down at him. This was going to be interesting.

Kadaj glared at him as he scooped up Souba and vaulted to his feet.

"You wish to fight me? Come than; this will still end the same," Chimera told him.

"Not if you're dead!" Kadaj said. He moved forward, swinging his sword in an arch.

Chimera merely sidestepped, and Kadaj swung Souba again, causing him to duck.

"Your blows are too wild," Chimera chided him, "Perhaps are you angry?" The dark glare that Kadaj sent him brought a smirk to his lips.

Watching them, Sophronica got to her feet. She couldn't just sit there anymore. She was reaching for Draco when Chimera suddenly whirled in her direction. He raised a hand, palm out, and suddenly she flew back, hitting the wall. Slightly dazed, she slid to the ground.

"Sit. Stay," Chimera said, as if she were a dog, and energy shackles encircled her wrists and ankles.

She struggled, but couldn't break free, and glared at him. She could only watch as he and Kadaj fought, the two almost identical in appearance.

Kadaj swung at him again, but Chimera blocked the blow almost absently. He struck out with Masamune and there was a clash of metal. Kadaj brought his sword around again only for Chimera to glide to the side and completely avoid the attack. It seemed like every move he made, Chimera was expecting it, keeping at least two steps ahead of him. As fast as he was, Chimera was faster. As unpredictable he thought a move, Chimera countered it. Kadaj leapt back to avoid a sweeping sword blow, but on the return swing, Chimera hit him across the chest with the flat of the blade. Already off balance, Kadaj stumbled back and fell. He raised his head just as Chimera set the tip of his sword against his throat.

"I told you this would end the same," Chimera said, tilting his head to the side as he gazed down at him.

He drew back the blade, preparing to deliver the final blow, when a blur of black and silver momentarily distracted him. Yazoo, also having broken free of the restraints, tackled him, knocking him to the ground. They each rolled to a crouch at nearly the same time, regarding each other for a moment.

"It would seem that my restraints are not strong enough," Chimera said with a small growl of annoyance.

"You underestimate us," Yazoo said, rising.

"Perhaps," Chimera said, rising as well, "Let us see if you can continue to surprise me though."

He suddenly swung Masamune, catching him by surprise. The long blade etched a cut across the side of Yazoo's face. A glare was the response. Chimera let him draw Velvet Nightmare, and that was the last chance he gave him. He swung his sword over his head and brought it down swiftly. Yazoo blocked, and at the same time, Chimera kicked him in the chest, knocking him back a few steps. He swung his blade again, and Yazoo dodged, raising Velvet Nightmare to fire at him. Chimera turned to the side, the bullet grazing his cheek. It was a wound that he didn't even worry about, as it stopped bleeding almost immediately. He swept Masamune low across the ground, causing Yazoo to leap straight up. While in midair, he shot at Chimera again, careful to be sure that he wouldn't hit any of the others.

Chimera dived into a forward roll, coming up on his feet and twisting to the side, evading every single bullet. By the time Yazoo had regained his footing, Chimera had reached him, bringing his sword around in a tight arch. He ducked, raising Velvet Nightmare. Chimera spun into a round house kick that knocked the weapon out of his hand and across the room. He didn't even pause as he continued towards him. Yazoo threw a punch, and Chimera side stepped it. He shifted his grip on Masamune, and brought it around in a blur of motion that resulted in a flash of pain. For a second, Yazoo gazed at Chimera in surprise, and Chimera gazed back with a stony expression. Then he pulled free the sword blade he'd buried two feet in Yazoo's chest.

"NO!" Sophronica screamed, her eyes wide with disbelief, sorrow-and anger. She could hear Loz shouting as well, but his words were lost to her ears.

Kadaj screamed, no words, just a scream, a sound akin to a battle cry, and rushed at Chimera with Souba raised. Chimera blocked the wild blow with his own now bloody sword, the force of it vibrating up his arms. He blocked another blow, each of Kadaj's vicious attacks forcing him to retreat a step. Sophronica struggled harder against the restraints, but in her weakened state, they were too strong. She had to get free, she had to help! She had to get to him! And then, all of a sudden, the restraints were gone, she could move. Blinking in surprise, she cast a look over at Loz. He gazed back at her, than nodded, getting to his feet. She returned the nod, a little slower climbing to her feet. By the time she was drawing Draco, Loz was already rushing towards Yazoo, Kadaj and Chimera.

But suddenly, Chimera spun Kadaj to the side, a Velvet Nightmare manifesting in his other hand. When it was complete, he raised it to aim at Loz. Just as he pulled the trigger though, Kadaj punched him, grabbing for the weapon. The shot went wild, only hitting Loz in the shoulder. With a growl, Chimera elbowed Kadaj in the face, firing again two more times. The shots hit Loz in the side, spattering blood and dropping him to the ground.

"Loz!" Kadaj shouted.

His brother wasn't dead, but Chimera was planning on fixing that. He aimed again, though before he could fire, Kadaj kicked him in the shoulder. Chimera stumbled back.

"You're becoming quite a nuisance," he said. The Velvet Nightmare he held vanished as he gripped Masamune with both hands again.

They both paused though as a wave of heat washed over them. Sophronica stood behind them, Draco in one hand, the tip pointed down. The engraving on the blade was glowing, rising up through the air to swirl around her. A second after they vanished, flames erupted from the tip of the sword, traveling up the blade, up her arm, and across her shoulders, until she was completely engulfed. She seemed completely unharmed by this though-just uber pissed off.

With a snarl, Chimera dashed forward with his sword raised. Before he reached her, there was a sudden blinding flash of light and both he and Kadaj went flying backward. Even as the light started to fade, Chimera scrambled to his feet. But he stumbled, disorientated. He couldn't see. All around him pressed darkness. He slowly turned in a circle.

"Interesting trick Sophronica," he called, his voice echoing, "But it won't stop me for-"

A sudden pain ripped through his chest, stopping him short. Masamune slipped from his grasp and disintegrated. He grimaced as his vision cleared. And there was Sophronica, nearly face-to-face with him, and the blade of her sword three feet through his chest. He gazed at her in surprise, pain.

"Don't fuck with my family," she whispered through gritted teeth, tears running down her face from wild, lost eyes.

Enraged, he back handed her with enough force to send her tumbling back. She lay where she fell and did not get up. Stumbling back a step, he slowly managed to pull out the sword, grunting in pain. He threw it aside, looking down at the blood issuing forth from the wound in his chest, staining his hands and chain mail shirt red. He stumbled back again and this time hit the wall, sliding to the floor.

"No," he rasped, "It can't end this way!" He wondered if he was really dying. No, he couldn't be! He could make it out of this! "…It can't…end…" His gaze flickered to Kadaj.

Chimera watched as he dragged himself to his feet, picked up Yazoo's Velvet Nightmare.

"I have to…finish my mission," Chimera said, a tear escaping and sliding down his face. He couldn't have failed, he was so close. So close to being free, that's all he wanted. "Have to…finish…" he repeated, grimacing, "So I can…be free…" he watched Kadaj walking towards him.

Kadaj stopped in front of him, gazing down at Shin-Ra's fallen warrior. Chimera seemed so lost, so hurt. So frail. But looks are deceiving; Kadaj had learned that well enough.

"You will be free," he said, raising Velvet Nightmare.

Chimera gazed up at him, the barrels of the gun aimed at his head. He was silent.

"For the Lifestream is where I condemn you." And then Kadaj pulled the trigger.


	19. Epilogue

**A/N: **Well, here it is; the last chapter of Catalyst. Yes, I know, before you say it, it ends with a major cliff hanger. But that's where the sequel comes in. _Catalyst 2: The Awakening_ will start to go up whenever I'm done tweaking the first chapter. Enough babble; enjoy.

------------------------------

**Advent Children: Catalyst**

**Epilogue**

…_A gunshot echoed through the warehouse, causing her to flinch, her eyes to snap open. Her gaze darted around. She saw Kadaj standing over Chimera, Yazoo's Velvet Nightmare in one hand. He tossed it aside, where it clattered against the concrete…_

…_Barely conscious, barely having the strength to keep her eyes half open. Kadaj is carrying her. She tilted her head to the side. Loz, as badly wounded as he was, was carrying Yazoo. Yazoo who was unmoving. Loz stumbled, almost going down. But the fact that he was carrying his brother stopped him. Even though she could see how much he was bleeding…_

…_Loz was crying. They were at the Loft. Kadaj was still carrying her. He didn't say a word to Loz like he usually would have, and by this she knew something was really wrong. She heard Kadaj whisper Yazoo's name before turning and heading down the hall…_

…_She was helpless to stop him as Chimera stabbed Yazoo. Could only watch…_

Sophronica awoke with a start, her eyes snapping open. She was breathing hard, like she'd just been running. Her gaze swept around as she realized she was back at the loft. This knowledge only comforted her a little. There was dead silence, no talking, not a single floorboard squeaked. She sat up, swinging her legs over the side of the bed. How long had she been out? Where were the others? As she stood, she noticed that she wasn't in any pain at all, she wasn't even sore. She left her room, walking down the hall. She rounded the bend and saw Loz sitting at the kitchen table. He raised his head when he noticed her.

"Loz!" she said, walking towards him, "What's happened?"

He just blinked at her.

"How long has it been since…?" she asked next, too anxious to really care if she got an answer right away. "Where are…" she couldn't finish the question, the words sticking in her throat.

Loz gestured to the stairs that led to the rooftop.

She frowned a little, puzzled by his silence, but understood what he meant. "Are you alright?" she asked.

He didn't respond, but looked away.

Gazing at him for a moment more, she then turned and walked up the stairs. Pushing open the door to the roof, she squinted in the sudden bright sunlight. Stepping out onto the roof, she looked around. The sun was warm, but she still felt cold. Turning, she saw Kadaj sitting cross legged on the concrete rail that ran the edge of the building.

"Kadaj," she called softly, walking towards him. Was he alone up here?

He turned his head at the sound of her voice. "I'm glad you're awake," he said, his voice sounding hollow.

She waited until she reached him before she spoke again. She leaned her hands on the concrete next to him, looking over at him. "What… happened?" she asked after a moment.

Kadaj didn't respond right away. "To start with, you've been out for a couple of days. I was worried you would not recover," he said. He paused for a moment, "Loz hasn't spoken a word since that night. And…Chimera's dead."

'_But what about Yazoo? Why didn't you mention him? Please tell me he's not…'_

"And Yazoo?" she prodded gently when he didn't mention him.

He was silent for a long moment. "Yazoo…" he started. He finally looked over at her, and could see how upset he was, "Yazoo won't wake up, and I don't know what to do. He always knew what do to when I needed him, and now when he needs me, I don't…I just…"

Chills worked their way up and down her spine at his words and her heart rate increased. She put her arms around his shoulders. No. Yazoo…had to wake up, right? He'd be alright…

----------------------------

Sophronica knelt beside the bed, blinking back tears. Yazoo lay as still as if…no, she couldn't think that!

"Yazoo," she whispered, moving a few strands of his silken hair back from his face.

He didn't move, gave no sign that he'd heard her.

She swallowed hard, tears blurring her vision for a moment. She determinedly blinked them back. "Tenshi…" she took his hand in both of hers. "Please, wake up. Open your eyes. I need you. Your brothers need you."

Nothing.

"Please," she whispered, a tear sliding down her face.

Kadaj stood in the doorway, silent for a long moment. "There's…something else…" he said softly.

Sophronica didn't move, her gaze sweeping over Yazoo's angelic face as if willpower alone could awaken him. "What is it?"

"I've…seen Shin-Ra's people around. Looking. I suppose when Chimera didn't return, they figured out he failed," Kadaj said. He paused for a moment. "I don't know how long it will be before they find us, but I'm afraid it will be too soon."

She absorbed this information, a coldness encircling her heart again, "So? Let them come. I'll kill every one of them who even _thinks_ about…" she didn't finish, didn't have to.

Kadaj didn't say anything.

Why couldn't Shin-Ra just leave them alone? They'd been willing to just vanish, to leave. They'd tried, but Shin-Ra was determined. Too damn determined. Another realization came to her that Reno would probably be with them. Didn't matter; everyone at Shin-Ra was the same to her. Even if she had to lie to herself about it. She kissed Yazoo's fingers, another tear sliding down her face. And was she just paranoid from what Kadaj had told her, or could she hear the boot steps of Shin-Ra personnel coming up the stairs right now?

**End**


End file.
